Cadmus's Night Sky
by SigmaFang
Summary: An extensive reach taking place after the abrupt end in the second season in the anime, with an OC added to the mix. Rated M just because I like staying on the safe side, also in case I feel like putting a lemon in.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Alright, let me start by addressing the elephant in the room, the Fairy Tail fanfic. I know it's been a while since I updated that, *sweats at angry mob of Fairy Tail fans* but as I've said multiple times before, it will never be dropped, maybe a hiatus, as real-life has been a bit cruel lately and I wanted to start some other fics. I also write with my sister and we're trying to get published, so that has been getting in the way too. But I have no intention of killing off my Fairy Tail fic, I'm quite able at running multiple stories at once, I've been doing it for years.

Now, to talk about Haganai. I've only recently gotten into this series, (I literally finished the anime yesterday, if not a few days ago). I was initially nervous about doing this, because my knowledge of these characters doesn't hold a flickering candle to my knowledge of the Fairy Tail characters, but when I was watching the anime, I was sort of disappointed at the end of the second season, so I sort of brainstormed this up in the span of a night. I did a fair bit of research too on the light novels so I wouldn't screw the characters up that badly. (But apparently what I've heard about the end of the light novels is that it has an even worse ending. Like seriously, Alvarez is somehow better). Without further ado, I'll stop rambling and get this started, as the summary stated, it takes place right after the anime ends.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

Cadmus sighed as he walked through the night, towards the edge of the road, every so often a midnight driver would pass him by on the road. He took yet another deep sigh. Someone as young as him shouldn't be out here this late at night, they should be home with their parents getting ready for classes the next day. Did it necessarily stop him? Not really.

He leaned on the tall guardrail in front of him, looking out at the sea. He had done this so many nights he had lost count. He was avoiding something just as much as she was. He had no intention of going to school, and only lazily attended after spurts of walking out in the dark all night in streams that could last days. His dark glare reflected back at himself from the sea. He had very dark brown eyes, wild black spiky hair, black jeans and boots, and a black leather jacket, with yet another black trench coat over it, although the second coat was hardly fastened and it did little more than flap in the wind most of the time.

He looked over to his right, wondering what was catching his eye. To his surprise there was someone else standing by the guardrail as well, only a couple feet away from him. She had short black hair that barely reached the end of her neck, a small green coat over her plain shirt with a black tie, a green skirt, black stockings, and simple brown shoes. He squinted at her, he recognized the uniform, or at least he was pretty sure he did, either that or it was too dark to tell.

"Tch." Cadmus said. _What the hell does she think she's doing out here? Doesn't she have school tomorrow?_ He also had school tomorrow, but he wasn't going to focus on that detail right now. _I've been here easily for months, I can't think straight with another person brooding here. Jeez, wonder what the hell her problem is?_ He turned to face her and walked over to confront her, "Hey." He started briskly, in a gruff and scratchy voice that probably made him come across as more intimidating than he intended, "What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be home getting ready for school tomorrow?"

The girl met his gaze with dazzling violet eyes. That fact alone already had Cadmus's usual folds and veins of anger gone in a flash, what was left was just a speechless pale look on his face. Her scowl was also a compelling sight to see, if it were not the fact that Cadmus himself started said scowl in the first place.

"Yeah, thanks, but I don't really need a busybody hovering over me, go take your drugs somewhere else." The girl dismissively swatted a hand. She had a clear and smooth voice, deeper than Cadmus's.

"Drugs…?" He wondered, then he looked down at himself. He was wearing heavy dark clothing, a fair enough observation. Although everything else about this was confusing to him. When he rose his voice, people usually yielded or at least listened to him. This young woman just brushed him off as if he were a measly insect, with such a commanding voice, nonetheless. _What gives?_ "So why are you out here?"

"Just leave me alone."

He narrowed his eyes, "You go to St. Chronica's Academy, don't you?"

Her eyes widened, she looked at him as their eyes met, "I'm a bit concerned as to how the hell you even know that in the first place."

"I'm a student there too. I recognized your uniform."

"Are you a second year too?"

Cadmus nodded, "I don't think we're in the same class though, I don't think I've ever seen your face."

"Great." She muttered sarcastically, "So why the hell did you ask me about missing school? Wouldn't that apply to you too?"

"Maybe…" Cadmus faced the ocean again.

The girl's phone started ringing an absurd amount. The amount of jingles and songs coming from it suggested that either she was receiving messages from multiple people or she was getting straight-up text-bombed, "Uh…" Cadmus said, "You gonna…you gonna answer those?"

"No."

He rolled his eyes, "What if it's your parents, wondering where the hell you are?"

She gave a dry laugh, "It's not my parents, that much I can tell you."

He was at a loss after that one. The way that she was _so sure_ it wasn't her parents sort of disturbed him a little. Yes, he was going through some issues as well, but he at least had the support of both his parents. How many problems did this girl even have?

"Well, the point is _someone's_ worried about you at least. Doesn't that mean anything?" Cadmus asked.

"It means nothing, god, will you just shut up and leave me alone!" The girl growled, "Your hair looks ridiculous and you're wearing enough leather to be freaking edge-lord of the year, get out of my sight."

" _You're_ making fun of _my_ hair?" Cadmus cocked an eyebrow, "You look like you bent your head into a mower and lost a huge chunk of your hair, it looks so crudely done!"

He had no idea what the weight of that insult truly meant to her. Her face went white and tears welled up in her eyes. This much didn't surprise Cadmus, he must've overstepped his boundaries.

She clenched both her fists, "What did you say?" It was a low growl that emerged from her lungs, how she shredded her voice send chills down Cadmus's spine.

Cadmus swallowed hard. He'd never seen anything like this before. _Shit, shit, she's not sad…she's mad._ He expected her to run off crying or something.

Instead she ran _towards_ him, decking him in the face. He felt the world around him slow down as her fist slammed into his face. His vision blurred and for a second he saw black. He stumbled back slightly, his outer coat flapping about more drastically with the sudden backward motion.

When his sight was no longer clouded, his dark eyes zoomed in onto her. Her breathing was strained and irritated, like an enraged dragon. This girl wasn't running anywhere. She was standing her ground.

Cadmus winced as he felt a fountain of blood pour from his nose. He had been in many fights in the past, sometimes with men double his size, but somehow a girl half his size was able to show all of them up in this one night. He swallowed hard, shaking a bit, was he, was he _scared_ of her now? He never felt a fear of getting his lights knocked out so one-sidedly before.

"Let's go." The girl barked, "I'm not done with you…"

Cadmus wiped more blood off his face. _I'm not getting into a fight with this girl…for many reasons._ He tried to play it cool, "Hey…" He coughed, "That was a pretty good punch…" He winced again, "You're amazing…sure are a tough person…"

"Are those supposed to be last words or something?"

 _Shit, she's not even flattered._ He held a cautious hand out, "Look, I'm sorry…I didn't mean to pick on your hair…I was just being a jerk…I…didn't really picture my death being…a girl beating the shit outta me…I'm really sorry…"

"Tch." She looked back at the ocean, "You're lucky I'm so pissed off, I don't have the energy to properly dispose of you."

Cadmus stood next to her, leaning on the guardrail and feeling his face, "What's your name?"

She gave an annoyed sigh, "So…I punch you in the face, and you _still_ stay?"

"I'm Cadmus Vanderbilt."

She shook her head, "Yozora Mikazuki, happy?"

He gave a nod, then his eyes shrunk, "Wait, I totally know you."

She cocked an eyebrow.

"You're always near the top on those exam boards." Cadmus nodded, "You're pretty smart."

She turned a faint hue of pink, looking away, "Shut up."

"You're welcome." He snickered.

Yozora snarled, her knuckles went white as she grabbed the guardrail. Cadmus would be punched again if he kept it up.

"So what's a genius like you doing loitering around here?" Cadmus asked, "Someone smart like you should stay in school, or else your grades will start to suck." He said. He felt a little bad for Yozora, she was intellectually gifted. Himself, well, not as much.

"Ugh, I don't need you nagging me about going back to school, Scruffy, beat it."

"…Scruffy?"

"Pfft, yeah, just look at your hair." She gave a daring smile, "Look up 'Scruffy' in the dictionary and that's what you'll get." She fluffed his hair.

A faint blush spread on his cheeks when he felt her hand go through his hair. He turned away from her, "Alright, I'll leave you alone then…sorry for bugging you…" He started walking off, "I'm starving anyways."

He entered a pretty simple, run-down restaurant. He oftentimes stopped here on his many guilt trips away from home. He sighed and looked around for somewhere to sit. Given the time of night, there were plenty of options.

As he stopped in the middle of the building, someone bumped into him, "Hey, watch where you're going, idiot."

Cadmus looked behind himself, "Yozora?"

She blushed, "Well, yeah, I thought…well, being outside alone in the middle of the night or whatever…is just stupid…so…since we're from the same school, we should probably stick together, or whatever…"

 _How many times does she need to say 'whatever' in one train of thought?_ "Alright…" Cadmus said, "I'm gonna sit in that corner over there probably, but I'll order at the front first, do you want anything?"

"No." She went to the back corner.

Cadmus sighed, ordering at the front counter and waiting until his soup was ready, then he moved back in the corner where Yozora was. The strange thing was he heard Yozora talking and laughing in a much happier manner than in which she spoke to Cadmus, even though he was quite certain that they were the only two patrons in this restaurant. When he sat across from her, he asked, "Who are you talking to?"

"Shit, you heard that?" Yozora swallowed hard.

"It was hard not to…"

"I was just talking to Tomo."

Cadmus looked around, even at the ceiling, "Tomo?"

"She's my friend, alright? Made of air. Like an air-guitar? You can comprehend that much, right?"

"Nope." Cadmus said, "I have a _real_ guitar and _real_ friends, so I guess I _can't_ comprehend."

Yozora frowned, "I'm going to bury you alive." She held a fist up.

"Jeez…" Cadmus sighed, starting to eat his meal, "So you gonna tell me what the hell pissed you off in the first place?"

"No."

"What if I tell you what's bothering me, first?"

"Pfft, like I want to hear about your stupid life."

"Ouch…" Cadmus said. He figured getting any further in this conversation with Yozora was pointless, so he started stuffing his face a bit faster.

"Meat just…ruins everything…okay?"

"Hmm?" Cadmus looked up, "Meat?"

"Yeah, you wanted an answer, didn't you?"

Cadmus blinked as a massive pause held the air, he looked at his soup, it was miso soup, so, he was sure there was meat, or fish in there somewhere, "Uh…meat…ruins everything?"

"No…you idiot…" She sighed, "Meat. Ruins everything." Her voice got a little shaky, "If it weren't for her…Kodaka and I would…"

"I'm confused…" He said after a swallow, "You sure you don't want to eat anything?"

"No." Her stomach growled.

He cocked an eyebrow, "What was that?" He asked, "I couldn't hear you over…your stomach growling…"

She didn't provide an answer, her face just went a little red.

 _Jeez, why the hell can't this girl say 'yes'?_ He took the tiny salad side dish they provided him, "Here, take this, I don't even want it. Can't have you starving to death. You'll need your energy to bury me alive properly, right?"

Yozora started eating quietly, not responding to his jest. Either the night was getting to her, or the weight of her epiphany. Cadmus watched her face, a very pained face at that. Something terrible clearly happened to her. It was _what_ that thing was that was driving Cadmus up a wall.

They left the restaurant not too long after they finished eating, Cadmus stretched his arms, "Well, I'm going home now…"

"Going…home?" Yozora repeated slowly.

"Yeah." He shrugged, "I do this crap all the time. Get pissed off about something, cool off at night, get home late, sleep until twelve. Pretty damn therapeutic, if I'm even using that word correctly."

"Tch, that sounds idiotic."

"Oh yeah, then what's your grand plan?" Cadmus challenged, "What do you even plan on doing after tonight?"

She faced forward, "I'm going on a journey…"

"A…what?" Cadmus asked, "You're shitting me, right?" He shook his head, "Well, I'm heading back home, and if you live as close to the school as I do, it'll at least take a ride in the subway to get back to that part of town."

"Ugh, fine, let's go." Yozora said bitterly.

The terminal for the subway was a bit more crowded than the restaurant, which surprised Cadmus, given what time of night it was, "Jeez…I didn't know there would be a busy period at this time of night…" He muttered, then he looked at his side, a bit concerned that Yozora was nowhere in sight, "Shit…Yozora?"

He stood up on tiptoes, there were so many heads behind him he couldn't see Yozora anywhere, so he backtracked in an effort to locate her. When he finally did find her, she looked even less vibrant than she had when he first spoke to her. Her face was green and she was holding her forehead.

"Yozora!" He called, going back to her side, "Are you alright? Do you…need a hand walking or something…?"

She closed her eyes and moaned, then she brooded, "Keep your filthy hands away from me…"

"Right…" Cadmus faced forward. _Crap, is she reacting to the salad I gave her something? It wasn't even that big…maybe I should have listened when she told me 'no.'_

By the time the subway was ready, Cadmus had lost sight of Yozora yet again, he looked back, swallowing hard once he saw her. _Christ, she passed out?_ Sure enough, she was laying on the ground, still with that sick expression on her face. He bent down, putting one arm under her legs and one behind her neck, lifting her up and carrying her onto the subway. He headed all the way to the back, seating her in the right most seat while he sat to the left, figuring she would want some space away from him when she woke up.

He slipped a simple i-Pod out of his pocket and started listening to music, hoping that would speed up their trip home. Metal music usually sounded edgy to people or at the very least kept them awake, but Cadmus seemed to develop a talent for napping right through it if he needed to.

Yozora was not happy when they reached their destination.

"Scruffy…" She growled as she awoke from her zombie-like state, "You touched me, didn't you?"

Cadmus put his I-Pod away, "I mean, the alternative to that was having you lie on the ground of a subway terminal…so…it was a big decision I had to make."

"I swear to god if you did anything indecent while I was out I'll tear your organs out one by one and watch you bleed out." She remarked as she led the way off the subway.

"Yeah, I get it." Cadmus followed her out, "Why the hell did you even pass out in the first place?"

She gave a shrug, "I can't really handle crowds."

"Oh…" Cadmus nodded.

"Well, any other questions, or am I finally allowed to go home now?"

"You mind telling me who the hell Taka is?"

She froze, shivering a little, "W-What…?"

"That's all you said in your sleep. Taka this, Taka that…who the hell are they? Lemme guess, another air friend or something?"

Yozora put a hand on her chest, shaking like a leaf, it looked like she was going to have some kind of breakdown.

Cadmus held a hand up, "I get it. I stepped over the line again. You don't have to answer that." He turned away, headed for home, "Later, Yozora."

"…you better not follow me or else it'll be the last thing you do."

"Got it. Hasn't really planned on it." Cadmus chuckled and shook his head.

* * *

 **A/N:** Alright, that's probably enough for Chapter One, I'm still figuring out where exactly I'm going with this, but I have to say, it was pretty fun. Writing a bit more peaceful slice-of-life rather than an action anime with magic and swords and all that was pretty interesting with this. I also have to say that after having an OC knight who is mister polite, mister refined, prim and proper, it was nice to let loose as leather-wearing, gothic punk character. I'll get to Chapter Two as soon as I'm able. Until next time!


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Alright, now Chapter Two is up. If November keeps being so kind to me, I'll be able to keep busting out new chapters for both of my stories with no problem whatsoever. Let's hope it stays that way!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

 _Shit._ Cadmus was taking his nighttime stroll and he came across the same person in the same exact spot as the last time he happened to come this way. _Talk about déjà vu…_ He shook his head, "Still here, huh?"

"You again?" Yozora asked.

"What the hell do you mean, 'you again'?" He snapped, "This was my spot _way_ before it was your spot there pal…"

"Then I'll just go somewhere else." She rolled her eyes, "And you can get your peaceful little spot, sound good?" She huffed off in another direction.

"Wait." Cadmus held a hand out, "I admit this all started because I liked being here alone, but I honestly think you should go back to school…you know, to keep your grades up."

"This is beyond stupid coming out of you, how many days did you skip in this week alone?"

"Uh well…tonight might be my third night…maybe…"

"So out of the five days of school we've had this week, you've skipped that many?"

"Two outta five ain't bad."

With this her pout faded and her expression just became vacant and tired, "I rest my case."

"Yeah, but it's different with you!" He said, then his tone quieted down drastically, "You're actually smart…"

"Tch." She crossed her arms and looked away, "Look Scruffy, I don't need your pity."

"It's not really pity…it's more of worry…to be honest…"

"Ugh, you're _worried_ about me?" She took a step back.

 _Pretty sure this girl is incapable of showing positive emotions at this point._ "Yeah, a little at least, what the hell is wrong with that?"

"You don't even know me, besides, I don't take well to people who act so 'friendly' to me the second we get to know each other, you're just going to backstab me in the end." She said, "You're being fake."

His mouth hung open, stupefied, "I'm _being_ fake…"

She nodded, "You're just like all the other normals."

He cocked an eyebrow, "Normal people don't skip random chunks of the school year…look, Yozora, if I go back to school, will you?"

"No!"

He growled, "Than _what_ is it? What happened at school that was _so bad_ you have to come out here every night and sulk about it! You know, with all this suspense, this should be pretty good, it's probably nothing."

Her eyes sharpened with anger, "It didn't even happen _at school_ , idiot."

He scratched the back of his head, "Wait…it didn't…?" He couldn't take much more of all this confusion, his curiosity on the matter was driving him mad, soon he was going to tear his hair out at this rate.

A small smile curved onto her lips, as she balled her hands into fists, "You want to be useful to me, Scruffy?"

"…okay, so this conversation took a dark turn…"

"Let's finish what we started last night." She slammed a fist into her open hand, "I'd love to put a few holes in you, let some anger out. What was that word you used last night? Therapeutic. Yeah, that. That word's way too big for you to know, first of all."

Cadmus backed away, until he bumped into the guardrail, "Yeah…about that…I don't think fighting would really solve anything…" He said. He certainly didn't want another fight, especially after what happened _last time_. His head still had a mild ache in his head since she punched him yesterday, with such force that he was left with a persistent nosebleed. He would never utter these words out loud, but she hit him harder than anyone else had in his entire life, and he was in enough brawls to be hit plenty of times.

"You're backing out?"

"I'm not interested in fighting you." He said, "I'd rather just talk to you, but you've made it pretty clear you want to keep the whole mess you were in by yourself." He shrugged, "So…never mind."

She cocked an eyebrow, "You really want to hear it, huh?" She asked, "How a little insect like me fell so hard, like a piece of trash? How I ran away from everything like the piece of shit I am?" She asked, raising her voice with every question.

Cadmus held his hands out, "Look, I never said that…you're not trash…now you're just putting words in my mouth…"

Yozora fell to her knees, quivering, and giving a quiet, almost creepy laugh, "Everything I do…it…it's just so hopeless…I'm so pathetic…" She hugged herself, her eyes wide and tired, and were those tears welling up in them?

Cadmus swallowed hard, this girl, who trash-talked others so easily, as if by second-nature, also thought this poorly of herself? Someone who seemed to hate society around them also hated themselves with such a burning passion? While laughing at her own misery? Who was this girl?

He knew he had said enough. He got down to her level, "Yozora-

"Don't touch me."

He sighed and sat on the ground cross-legged, facing away from her. Yozora's eyes faced the night sky and the sea reflected below, while Cadmus faced the long road ahead and the oncoming traffic. The duo would certainly be an odd sight to see to any oncoming cars, with both of them just mindlessly kneeling and sitting on the side of the road, respectively. Yozora's phone would occasionally go off every so often, but she refused to do anything to answer it. Cadmus closed his eyes and shook his head, feeling even sorrier for her at this point.

* * *

"Yozora!" Kodaka called, "Yozora!" He called louder, each one becoming more fruitless than the last. He took an exasperated sigh, he thought for sure the park where the two of them played together as Sora and Taka would be a pretty certain guess as to her whereabouts, but he couldn't see anyone for miles at this hour, let alone Yozora.

"She's not out here, is she?" An exhausted, feminine voice asked, as Sena stood by his side, "Well, she wasn't here last night, I can't say I'm surprised."

"I know…" Kodaka took a deep breath, unable to hide his worry about her. Sena timidly grasped his hand, causing the both of them to blush. He looked ahead with his dark hazel eyes and he ran a hand through his dirty blonde hair. He wore a white collared shirt, a necklace, green pants that were rolled up near the bottom, and simple brown shoes. Sena had long blonde hair, baby blue eyes, a blue butterfly hair clip on the left side of her head, and a green coat over a white shirt with a black tie, similar to Yozora's school uniform, even with the green skirt, black stockings, and brown shoes. A significant difference was the Sena had a bit more of a mature body which could easily be noticed by her chest. She and Kodaka did look like quite the picturesque couple, standing out in a park on the hour of twilight.

Rika yawned, putting a hand over her mouth. Aside from Sena and Kodaka, she was the only other person out this late looking for Yozora. Given it was their second night looking, some of the members of the Neighbors Club were beginning to lose hope that she would even come back. "Rika might go back home soon…we've been looking for quite a while." She had medium length brunette hair that reached about the middle of her back when it was down, having brown eyes to match that, as well as a lab coat over her typical school uniform.

"Alright, thanks for the help, Rika." Kodaka said.

"Rika might just send one more voicemail…just to see if it does anything…" Rika got her cell phone out and attempted to call Yozora for the umpteenth time, spewing out a large dialogue of swearing and all sorts of other insults that sounded especially ironic coming from such a sweet sounding voice.

Kodaka flinched as he heard Rika give Yozora the business in such a flat-out and straightforward manner, with absolutely no holds barred. She got quieter and quieter as she left the duo to go back home.

"Uh…Kodaka…?" Sena asked.

"Hmm?" Kodaka looked up from his reverie.

"You never gave me an answer, dummy."

"A…an answer?" He repeated, if it were the old Kodaka, he most likely would have asked, 'What? What are you talking about?' or 'What did you say?' as a response, but after his last conversation with Rika, he pretty much figured that was a dead catchphrase.

"Sena…" He said gently as he faced her, "I love you…and…and I'd like to go through with the engagement…but…at our own pace, alright? Everything happened so fast…I'm pretty sure that's why Yozora ran off in the fashion that she did…" He sighed. That was _exactly_ why she ran off in the way she did. Didn't she know how childish it was to have so many people worry about her? He understood where she was coming from, _sort of_. Rika made it clear that he had been inadvertently playing all these girls like a game, but nevertheless he knew that once he did settle on someone, a certain sort of balance would be shifted. But he could have never foreseen Yozora's departure to be both so sudden, and so permanent.

Sena's cheeks flushed as she gave his hand a squeeze, "I like that…I think I can accept that answer."

* * *

It felt like he had been sitting there for hours. Sitting in the dirt on the side of the road, he felt like an idiot, humiliated. With each passing minute, his anger stacked like a pile of bricks. He could feel the heat of Yozora kneeling behind him, looking the opposite direction. Not only did this woman piss him off, but she made him feel a whole slew of helpless and saddening feelings, none of which made him feel any better about his own situation.

He looked at his hands, his shaking pale hands, protected from leading to his arms which were protected from the wrist down by a couple of leather jackets. _You failed…again? That's just great Cadmus. Just great. You failed, again. Why is it you can fool around like a complete master, yet simple schoolwork completely puts the brakes on any sort of brainwaves in there? Hmm? What's the matter Cadmus? Do you like grunt work? Do you like working menial jobs for your entire life, because all that's where all of this failing nonsense will get you!_

Was his dad actually trying to look out for him? He had no way of telling, it sounded less like 'advice' and more like hurling insults to him. But to be fair to his father, he had been a problem at school for a while now. Especially when he did stunts like these. But he did this _because_ of all the stress of school and his father's expectations, in a way it was a vicious cycle that he hasn't found his way out of quite yet.

"Taka."

Yozora's body stiffened, her apparent signs of anxiety worsened just at the drop of that name.

"Meat."

Yozora looked over the back of her shoulder, "What the hell are you trying to do?"

Cadmus looked over the back of his shoulder, their eyes met, "Well, those are the only two words that seem to elicit a response out of you aside from your generic vitriol and anger, so I'm just trying to put the pieces together here."

"Look, I'm just a big, stupid, idiot, alright?" She squeezed herself a bit tighter with each detail she tacked onto herself, "You want a story? There, that's your story, it's the summary of it, at least!" She had to shout over her phone ringing yet again.

Cadmus took a deep sigh, taking a couple more to prevent himself from trying to tear the nearest object in front of him into many tiny pieces. He stood up and looked down at her, "You _really_ don't want me to try and put the puzzle pieces together myself. Because I could just start…you know, guessing what happened to you, and you sure as hell probably don't want that."

She closed her eyes, "Scruffy…" She said, her voice imitating a sort of calm before the storm.

"Lemme guess…you…ate bad meat…and…and it gave you gas for the rest of the day, and you've been embarrassed ever since."

She would've laughed at the ridiculousness of his statement if she wasn't in such a horrible mood. She stood up to face him, "With every guess you want to make, I'll remove an organ out of your body, sound fair?"

"Stay back." He said, "I wouldn't do it. The only reason you hit me before is cause I didn't see it coming."

"Don't make me laugh, Scruffy." She smiled, but just like any other smile Cadmus had seen from her, it was full of malice and vengeance, "Let's go." Her phone made another blaring alert noise again.

"Are you gonna answer your damn phone or not?"

"I told you, Scruffy, it's no one important."

"Well, if it isn't your family, than it's probably one of your friends."

She narrowed her eyes, "I have no friends."

He looked stunned, just when he thought he learned all her tricks, there was something else she had hidden up her sleeve, "You're shitting me…right?"

"Does it look like I'd be in the mood to play a little joke on you right now?"

"You have…no friends…"

"None."

"At all?"

"No."

He snarled, "What a load of bullshit!"

"You think this is funny, Scruffy?"

"If you have no friends, and you're sure it's not your family…than who would be trying to get your attention? _Who?_ Is it Tomo? Is _Tomo_ trying to call you? With her air cellphone?" This was practically asking for it. He knew he stepped over the line again, but that seemed to be the only way to speak Yozora's language, at least for the time being.

"I'm gonna make sure not even your bones are left behind…" Yozora fumed, eventually she let out weakly, "It was probably just someone from my club…"

"Club?" Cadmus had to strain his ears to hear her last bit.

"Yeah…the Neighbor's Club."

"Never heard of it." He said, although this was probably just because Cadmus wasn't really an extra-curricular activities sort of person.

"So…yeah, it was probably someone from the club, that's all."

"Hmm…so basically the reason you're out here is because something at the club, am I right?"

She frowned, "How does it feel to be smart for exactly one tiny moment in your life, hmm Scruffy?"

He shrugged, "I'm going to figure out the whole story eventually, whether you tell it to me or not."

"Yeah right. I already told you what was happening. Everything was fine until Meat came along and ruined everything."

He looked puzzled, "So…a piece of meat…came into your club…and-

"No…this woman is a sickening, vile…disgusting…abomination…she ruined everything."

"Even so…even if I don't know the entire thing. I know what you should do." He said, "You need to go back to that club. They're clearly worried about you, or else they wouldn't text and call you several times a night. You can't just leave things so open-ended."

"I'll do what I want, I don't recall asking for your help at all."

"I'll carry your ass back there, if that's what it takes."

"Pfft, try and your arms will be severed off in a slow and painful fashion."

"And what's your alternative, going on a 'journey'?"

"Just stop trying to help me!"

He rolled his eyes, "When I'm nice to you, you flip out. When I try to help you, you flip out. And when I'm nasty to you, you flip out. Just what the hell is your problem? Is there _any_ way I can communicate with you?"

"Yeah, that's because I don't like you." She narrowed her eyes, "You're just some fake edge-lord who's trying to act all nice only to backstab me later. That's why making so many close connections is ultimately pointless to do in the end, it'll only result in your misery."

His face darkened with both anger and irritation. He had enough of Yozora's depressing sermons for one night. This place was supposed to be his escape but ever since she came along he was more stressed out than he ever had been before. If nothing else, helping Yozora out would give him some peace and quiet, even if he was being accused of being too 'fake' and 'friendly'. He walked past her to leave her to her own devices, both of them facing away from each other, "I _will_ figure out what the hell is bothering you though, with, or without your help."

* * *

 **A/N:** I can't get over how different it is writing these scenes compared to my other story, but I think it makes it fun. I don't really have as much of a solid plan for this fic as I do my other one. (In which I have literal charts and lists for when specific events and milestones are to take place.) I plan to have Cadmus and Yozora join and rejoin the club eventually, to reunite with the main cast, probably in a chapter or two at the longest. I just can't picture Yozora getting over her entire ordeal so easily, that's the only reason I haven't had her return sooner. (Also, Yozora and Cadmus are both _very_ stubborn, which makes the scenes that much more entertaining to write). But I promise that these two will enter Neighbor's Club shenanigans shortly. Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Alright, I got chapter three up. I included a couple bits reminiscent of the light novels in this part, as I may do in future chapters depending on how certain events will occur, (Especially if Cadmus has no bearing to the plot). Without further ado, I hope you enjoy :)

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

Water was the most flexible element, it always changed into the shape of whatever container was fitted for it, and it always masked its color as whatever the sky provided. To be as loose and free-flowing as water, it must've been a nice sensation.

Cadmus shook himself off. _Damn it, why the hell am I thinking about all this shit?_ He wondered inside his head. _Is it…is it that boring here without Yozora?_ Staring at the ocean for so long made him start wondering about water. Usually whenever he came out here, Yozora was already there, but not tonight. He might have finally assured that this place would belong to him only again. But, did he want that? Just because she wasn't here didn't mean her problems weren't solved. Who was to say that she wasn't out there worsening them?

It wasn't until he heard footsteps that he realized how much he missed any sort of company, he looked behind himself, feeling a strange burst of elation welling up inside him, "…Yozora…?"

"Scruffy."

"What are you doing here?"

"Well…you know…if you go and figure it out by yourself…you're going to get the wrong idea, or whatever, so I'll tell you the right way of how it happened, because I don't want you to go around with the wrong information in your head, or whatever…"

His eyes slowly widened. Again he felt a fleeting sensation of joy, but he bit it back. If he gave Yozora praise for her moment of maturity, it would backfire and she would rearrange his body parts. So instead he decided to play it nonchalant and lean against the guard rail, crossing his arms, "Spill it."

"Well…Taka…he was my childhood friend…but that's it, okay? Just a childhood friend…we played together a lot, but it wasn't really for that long…he moved away after that…"

He nodded.

"But this school year…I met him again, as Kodaka…the problem was, I recognized him, but he didn't recognize me…"

"Oh…" Cadmus said. He remembered her mentioning Kodaka's name before.

"So…" She took a deep sigh, "I made a club, the Neighbor's Club, it was…for people who didn't have any friends to make friends but…it was really a club to reinvent Sora and Taka…the days of our youth…"

"Sora?"

"That's what Kodaka called me when we were little, and I called him Taka."

He nodded, both surprised and impressed that Yozora was the founder of the Neighbor's Club, "So then what?"

"Well, once people started joining, it started to go downhill, especially since Kodaka was the only guy in the club, all the other club members are girls…even Meat…" She growled the last bit.

This did nothing but confuse Cadmus. Isn't the point of a club or _for_ people to join? And Meat. Well, he finally learned a bit about that phenomenon, turns out Meat might actually be a person, he guessed.

"I…I was losing Kodaka…and I didn't even realize it…" She shivered, putting a hand on her forehead, "In some cases I was practically _shoving_ him away to anyone else! Then…then Meat came along with her stupid little engagement…"

"Engagement?" He asked.

She nodded, "Her father had it arranged for them to be married, or whatever, since they were little kids." She said dryly, "I guess Kodaka and Meat are the true childhood friends now…"

He closed his eyes and through silently for a minute or two, "So…Kodaka and uh…Meat…I guess, are engaged…sort of…and…you're jealous…"

"Jealous?" She snapped, "No, I'm not jealous at all!"

"You do have a crush on Kodaka, don't you?"

"No, that's…that's ridiculous…" She said, red and beyond flustered.

"How much bullshit do you expect to give me here?"

There was a pause as she did nothing but scowl at him, "So…yeah…that's everything…Meat said she was gaga over Kodaka and said that they should get married…I never went back after that."

"So wait…you don't even _know_ if Kodaka returns her feelings?"

She looked away, "Well…I-

"That settles it then, you need to go back to the club."

"But…but I can't go back!"

"What if Kodaka is waiting for you and he ditched the engagement…?"

"Well…then…I…"

"You should at least go back for everyone else's sake. You're their damn leader, aren't you?"

"…well…yeah…"

"Then you should go back. Hell, I'll go too even, I've always wanted to join a club."

"What? It's for people with no friends…you said you had friends."

"Well, that wasn't exactly truthful…at least not this year." He said, "I kinda have…acquaintances…but not really that many friends…"

"I see…" She said, "In that case, no one's stopping you. Acquaintances are that awkward stepping stone between friends and normal people. They can be useful occasionally, but it's dangerous to get too close-

"Right, why get too close if you're just going to get backstabbed in the end. Isn't that what you said?" Cadmus asked.

They both blushed, probably not expecting to complete each other's thoughts like that. Their blushes deepened and they looked away. Cadmus looked to the right while Yozora looked to the left. "I'll…I'll go back…" She muttered quietly.

"Good girl." Cadmus said, "You'll make everyone happy again."

"What did you just call me?" She snapped.

"Nothing, bye!" Cadmus started running off.

She growled, "I swear Scruffy, I will end you one of these days!"

* * *

The door to the Neighbor's Clubroom swung open, Yozora and Cadmus behind it. Yozora sighed, a large, timid blush on her face, "It's embarrassing…but I'm back…" She walked inside.

Cadmus walked in the club room behind her. The entire church itself was a very clean and immaculate place, but he was impressed by the interior of the club room even more so. To the right almost by the corner there was a television with quite a few game consoles hooked up to it, and to his immediate right there was a soft red couch. Slightly to the left in front of him was a table with five chairs, two on each side and one at the head.

"It's about time you get back." A busty blonde sitting at one of chairs to the left remarked. She had a blue butterfly clip on the left side of her head and generally filled out her uniform much better than Yozora did. Next to her Cadmus assumed was Kodaka, as Yozora did say he was the only guy in the club. He had dirty blonde hair and a gaze that initially looked hostile, but Cadmus felt for a guy like him, as he too looked like he wanted to flatten people, he always gave a horrible first impression.

Yozora growled, "Meat…I swear…"

"What? You have some nerve to pull a stunt like that one." The blonde continued.

"It's all your fault…"

"My fault? Oh, gee, how mature…you're the one who ran off like a child."

Yozora snarled and clenched his fists, muttering something under her breath.

"It's alright Sena…let's just be happy that she's back." Kodaka said, "We were all very worried about you."

Cadmus looked at Sena. So, _this_ was Meat? He didn't get it, but she must've been the person who 'ruined everything.' His eyes widened as he glanced under the table, Kodaka and Sena were holding hands, he leaned over to Yozora, "So…" He whispered, "Might not be the best to inform you…but it looks like Kodaka _does_ have feelings for her-

"I've noticed, genius!" Yozora snapped. Since what Cadmus said was so quiet and her response being so loud, the others only heard what Yozora said. Yozora took another dejected sigh and she sulked over to the head of the table where she always sat.

"So…uh…Yozora…" A quiet voice said, it was then that Cadmus noticed a girl standing to his right, near the doorway. She wore the typical black and green school uniform, her hair was in a short red bob, with a little pink flower on the left side, and her eyes were a light brown, "Who is your friend here…?"

"Yukimura?" Yozora asked, rubbing at her eyes a few times, "You…you're in the school uniform? What happened to your maid costume…hell, what even happened to your butler costume?"

Yukimura closed her eyes, "I've made a decision." She said in that calm and quiet voice of hers.

"…decision…?"

"While it's true that I have endeavored to become a true man in the past. I wish to make my own destiny with woman-power. Furthermore, I don't think I can trust your efforts to 'help' me anymore."

Yozora went a bit pale, she was surprised at soon some of her club mates would start disowning her right off the bat, "R-Right…"

"I shall return the uniforms to you once they're washed."

"No…it's okay…I don't really need them."

"Well, it would be a _bother_ for me to keep them, I insist."

Yozora swallowed hard, Cadmus had no idea what the subject matter was, but the tension cut now be cut with a knife.

"So, as to your friend?" Yukimura nodded to Cadmus.

"Who? Him? I don't know, he's just some guy who kept following me. He's not my friend, he's probably a stalker, if anything." Yozora swatted a hand.

Cadmus snarled, "Oh, ha, ha, very funny…if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have even came back here!"

"Rika thinks that Yozora returning with a shady guy dressed in all leather from head-to-toe is probably the source of some deep and nitty-gritty alleyway action!" A girl with brunette hair and a lab coat said, sitting in one of the chairs to the right, she clasped her hands together, "Rika loves it!"

Cadmus and Yozora both went as red as a tomato, Cadmus held a fist up, "That didn't happen at all! You wanna know what really happened?" He smiled, holding his hands out, "What can I say? I was just taking a nightly stroll and I found her sulking to her heart's content…if she even has one. Point is, I had to spend _days_ talking her into coming back here."

"You are so lying!" Yozora snapped.

"Am I?" A huge slasher smile spread across his face, "You don't wanna play this game with me, Yozora. The truth can hurt sometimes."

Yozora cocked an eyebrow, wondering if what he said was some sort of challenge or a threat.

"A name would be nice." Sena sighed, "Then I can call him something other than 'the sketchy guy who may or may not have slept with Yozora in an alleyway.'"

"That didn't happen cow udders, how many times do I have to tell you that?" Yozora spat, "He was just following me!"

"Why must you always insist on calling me such degrading nicknames?"

"Because you let your two slabs of meat flop around in the air so freely, who knew?"

"It's not my fault you're so flat-chested!"

"Shut up, I'm not even _that_ flat-chested!"

Cadmus sighed and sat in the open seat next to Yozora, "I'm Cadmus." He said, figuring if he didn't break the silence the two of them would be going at it for eternity, "I kinda wanted to join your club."

Kodaka gave a slow nod, "My name is Kodaka." He said, "I see you're acquainted with Yozora, this is Sena." He pointed at Sena who was sitting next to him, "Rika's on the other side of you. Yukimura's the one standing at the door, and Maria is the one sleeping on the couch."

Whether it was because people were talking about her or not, but Maria began to stir, she sat up and rubbed her sleepy blue eyes. "Hmm…?" She asked in a young, high voice, she couldn't have been more than ten years old, she was in a nun's uniform and she had long white hair, "Whoa…who's the new guy?" She asked.

"I'm Cadmus." Cadmus said.

"Oh wow…" Maria swallowed hard, "Yozora says that guys your age like to eat little girls…is…is that true…?" She asked as she cautiously approached him.

Cadmus let out a snicker, he pat her head, "I'll let you know when I'm hungry."

Maria giggled, then she pointed at him, "You sound like you smoke lots of cigarettes!"

"What? No I don't!" He growled as she ran off and laughed.

"Hold on, I'm not just going to let you in the club at the drop of a hat!" Yozora said.

"Well, you never really let _me_ in either…technically…" Sena said, "You locked all the doors and windows when I first tried to join…I don't see a problem with it…"

"You'll pay dearly for that…Meat…" Yozora muttered under her breath.

Cadmus smiled, happy that Sena dove in for the defense. Though his cheeks puffed out with a suppressed laugh. _Now_ he understood why Yozora called her Meat, he had to admit it was pretty funny. He also admitted that Scruffy is a _way_ better nickname than Meat, whether it's an insult or not.

"Wow, a new guy in the club, and he's dressed in nothing but black, with a badass long-coat to boot!" Rika cooed as she grabbed Cadmus's coat with one hand and his arm with another, "Rika welcomes you to the club, Cadmus!"

"Please let go of me…" Cadmus sighed.

"I think he looks weird with those coats on." Yozora said, "I mean, why do you need so many? I feel like if I just kept taking your coats off, there would be nothing but more coats underneath it."

A faint pink blush went over Cadmus's face, "Oh yeah? How come you wanna take off all my jackets so badly, hmm?"

He was struck in the face by a hard object that gave a cold _slap!_ "Ow!" Cadmus flinched, feeling his face, "Son of a bitch…what the hell did you even hit me with?"

Yozora held a flyswatter tightly in her hand, "What you said and the implications behind it are disgusting. Never say that again."

Cadmus felt his face, which probably looked like a bizarre checkerboard. Leave it to Yozora to figure out a way to turn ordinary objects into malicious weapons. She could probably kill him with half a pencil if she needed to.

Rika felt Cadmus's coat a bit more, eventually blurting out, "Rika is so wet right now!" This earned her the same punishment that Cadmus got.

He then noticed a figure hiding behind Kodaka's chair, she timidly stepped aside to reveal herself, "Oh, I almost forgot." Kodaka said, "This is my little sister, Kobato."

Cadmus smiled, "S'up, Kobato?"

Kobato swallowed hard, paralyzed with fear. Her entire outfit was a gothic-lolita look, with a black and white dress, white stockings and black shoes, and a black and white band in her blonde hair, which split off into two horse-tails down each side. She had one blue eye and one red eye. She nervously held two fingers out, holding them over her blue eye, "Ku, ku, ku…you may embrace the color of darkness, lowly mortal, but someone like you could only bow to my powers of the night…" She in a quiet, slightly creepy yet dainty voice.

Cadmus's eyes shrunk to the size of dots, "Uh…what…?"

"Ku, ku, ku, my speech is wasted on you, lowly mortal, you'll never comprehend my dark legacy…"

"Your…your what…?"

"Sorry…" Kodaka gave an apologetic grin, "She's into that show, Fullmetal Necromancer…"

"Oh." Cadmus said. So this club consisted of Yozora, Kodaka, someone whose nicknames revolve around her boobs, someone confused about their gender, an extremely horny scientist, a ten year-old nun, and someone who spends her life cosplaying as a vampire. Maybe Yozora was right and Cadmus _was_ normal, at least compared to most of these people.

"So…Yozora…" Kodaka prefaced, "Are you sure you're alright?"

"You're not Taka anymore, are you?" Yozora asked.

Kodaka was alarmed by her response, but nevertheless he was prepared with an answer, "No. No I'm not." His speed at dealing with Yozora's quick and snappy statements impressed Cadmus. It must be like learning a trade or a new foreign language at the very least.

"Then we're not friends anymore."

Cadmus's jaw dropped, "What the hell are you doing? Why the hell do you have to make everything so dramatic all the time?"

"Scruffy…" She growled, "You wouldn't…understand…"

Cadmus cocked an eyebrow, "Try me."

She stood up, "Listen. All of you, I want to make something very clear. I am nothing, I have become nothing, nothing but excrement on people's boots as they walk by. I've sunk to the lowest of the low. I don't have a childhood friend anymore, I don't have any friends anymore. I don't have anything likeable about myself for men. I ran away like a coward, my hair was burnt off, I threw up on someone, and I plagiarized." She quivered as she smiled, her face beet red and tears flowing down her cheeks, "I have nothing else to lose! I've hit rock bottom!"

There was a silence. Cadmus stared at her in shock, more so than everyone else, he was even paler than usual, with the heir of a 'so is this how a typical club day plays out?' look on his face.

Yukimura closed her eyes and looked down, "I think we should retire to our homes."

To Cadmus's surprise, the other members slowly filed out of the clubroom, with Sena rolling her eyes and shaking her head as she left with Kodaka. He was confused, enraged even. No one was going to address that? At all? After a handful of minutes, it was just himself and Yozora, the latter of which still standing with her beet red face.

She brushed her tears away, still seeing Cadmus seated in his chair next to her, "What the hell are you looking at?"

"You gotta stop treating yourself like shit all the time, it's why you have such a bad attitude."

"I don't need your help, how many times do I have to tell you that?"

He gave an annoyed sigh. _This_ is why no one bothered to help her, because they knew she would be difficult and she wouldn't listen to them. After all, everyone in the club knew her better than he did, especially Kodaka he imagined.

But he persisted, (or at least he tried to), "You'll never respect people if you can't even respect yourself."

"Who says I want to respect people…ninety percent of them are stupid normals who I have no intention of getting along with, ever."

"So you're just going to quit then?" He frowned, "Because Kodaka and Sena are going out, you're just going to lay down and roll over for them?"

"I already told you, I hit rock bottom…"

"Hitting rock bottom is one thing, but having no plans to climb back up to the surface…" He shook his head, standing up and heading for the exit.

"Hey, finish that thought, why don't you?" She growled, "Too afraid to?"

Cadmus stared out the doorway as he gave his response, "I was probably just going to finish with an insult…but you insult yourself so much I decided against it…"

"Oh, well I'm _so_ thankful for your forgiving nature…" She said sarcastically.

He took a long, low sigh, "Goodnight Yozora, see you tomorrow." He left.

* * *

 **A/N:** Maybe one day I'll end a scene without Cadmus and Yozora wanting to tear each other's throats out. They're sure to get along eventually, maybe, hopefully. Luckily I have the main cast all together now, so the next chapter should be pretty interesting. Until next time!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Here's Chapter Four, the Neighbor's Club shenanigans finally start. Enjoy :)

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

Cadmus walked through the front door of his house, "I'm home!" He announced. The interior of his house was relatively simple, there was a living room and a kitchen on the first floor, and a pair of bedrooms and a bathroom on the second. He didn't see anyone immediately in the living room, just the blank couch opposing the television, so he made his way to the kitchen, where his mother was working on dinner.

"Cadmus!" His mother beamed, she wore a blue blouse, skirt, and flats, matching her blue eyes and black hair that fell to her shoulders. She dropped what she was doing to hug him, "I'm so glad you're back!"

Cadmus choked, "Alright mom…don't kill your son…please…"

"You came back so late…I thought your father would beat you home…"

He panted as she realized her iron grip around him, "Well…I sort of…joined a club…"

"You did?" His mother's eyes widened, as this was unheard of for him until now, "Oh, Cadmus, that's great!" She gave him another deathly dangerous bear hug, "That's so great that you joined a club! Which club is it?"

"Uh…the Neighbor's Club…"

"Neighbor's Club…well that sounds unique…what do you do there?"

"Uh…well…I don't really know yet…but the club members seem nice at least…"

"Aw, really?" She beamed, due to Cadmus's abysmal academic record involving both grades and a social life the concept of him getting friends was quite the relief to his mother.

"Yeah, they're pretty cool." _Leader's a bitch though, but what the hell._

They both heard the front door shut from behind them, and Cadmus turned to see his father. He had short blonde hair, a very stern looking face, black-rimmed glasses, and a black suit on, "You look very relaxed and at peace, Cadmus." He said a lower-pitched voice, "Finished with your homework this early?"

Cadmus frowned, "Relax, I was just gonna get started on it." He said, "Lemme just eat something first, I'm starving."

His father's scowl somehow grew fiercer, "If you try to fool me and slack off on your homework, it won't bode well for you."

"I get it." He headed for the stairs, prepared to sequester himself in his room.

* * *

Even in the club room, Cadmus would nod off occasionally. He had no idea how the rest of them did all their work after school _and_ a club. The concept was foreign to him, although on the other hand, every else in the room was most likely smarter than him. Even Maria and Kobato probably were, even though they were ten and fourteen respectively, quite a few years younger than him.

He was inadvertently learning about all the hobbies the club members had. Yozora was sitting at the head of the table, reading a book. Maria was asleep on her couch, Yukimura stood by the door, for whatever reason. Cadmus had no idea whether to attribute it to restlessness or nervousness. Rika was reading some sort of manga, he couldn't exactly tell which, Sena was playing a game on the television, and Kodaka and Kobato were simply lounging in the two chairs across from him, previously they were doing their homework.

He adjusted his chair so he was facing the television, "So what're you playing?"

"Hmm?" Sena looked at him, "TokiMemo eight…it's uh…" She broke off, not feeling exactly all that comfortable explaining to him what the game was about with certain looming opinions about, "It's a game where you have to win a girl over…" She said quietly.

"Oh…" Cadmus said, "I heard of those…"

"What? You mean Meat's pornos over there? Yeah, they're so high class, aren't they?" Yozora taunted as she looked up from her book.

"Shut up!" Sena frowned, "There's nothing wrong with these games at all!"

"Yeah, sure, they're just about as high class as _you_ are."

Sena growled, standing up, "You are the worst!"

"Alright, alright…" Cadmus held his hands up, "I brought it up…it's my bad, just quit arguing…"

"You don't need to play mediator Scruffy." Yozora said, "I'm just putting Meat here in her place."

"Guys, knock it off." Kodaka said, quieting down the quarrel.

Cadmus took a deep sigh, at least they listened to Kodaka. He would have to take notes or something later. He looked at Yozora, "So what are you reading?"

"If you're going to be so annoyingly nosy, go do it someplace else." She said.

"Jeez…" He leaned over to Rika, "What are you reading?"

"The latest Yaoi manga…" Rika said, quivering with a sort of excitement Cadmus didn't quite understand.

"Uh…what…?"

"Don't ask. You'll live longer." Yozora flipped a page of her book.

He went silent. If it was anything else Cadmus would have probably argued with her. But in his laughably short time in the club, he got the feel that Rika was a bit too _affectionate_ , so he figured Yozora was in the right this time.

"So Cadmus…what do you like to do for fun?" Kodaka asked, smiling.

Cadmus looked at him, it felt strange to be in the club and be asked or told something _without_ a curveball attached to it, "Uh…well, I play a little guitar…but that's kinda it…"

"That must be pretty fun."

"Please play your guitar for Rika…" Rika turned to him, a look of hunger on her face.

"No." Cadmus said.

"How long have you been playing it?" Kodaka asked.

"Uh…a while…it's almost been ten years…I'm pretty good."

Kodaka nodded, there was a slight pause, and then he asked no one in particular, "So what are we going to do next, as a group?"

There was a pause, "I'm not sure…good question." Yozora said.

"Whatever it is, it should be something special, for Cadmus's first time with us." Rika said.

Cadmus didn't care for how she said 'special' or 'first time', but nevertheless he politely nodded.

"Have we ever gone camping?" Yukimura asked.

"Hmm…camping…" Yozora closed her book, "That could work. A lot of people who are friends camp, if we don't ever learn how to do it firsthand, we'll look like idiots when we eventually do go camping with friends. I'd say it's worth a practice run."

Cadmus cocked an eyebrow. Why was she saying it like that? Weren't everyone in the club already friends, or did the others not see it that way?

He shrugged and agreed with Yozora's sentiment regardless, "I'm game." He said.

"When should we do it?" Kodaka asked.

Sena looked away from her game, "This weekend works for me."

There was a bit of chatter, no one else had any other plans for the weekend.

"It's settled then." Yozora opened her book again, "This weekend, we're camping."

"Yay!" Maria cheered, sitting up on the couch, "I can't wait to go camping!"

"Ku, ku, ku…foolish minion of god, you'd better hope those who watch the night don't ambush you in your sleep…" Kobato taunted.

"Hey! I hope the wild animals eat you first, you stupid poopy vampire!"

Cadmus snickered hearing the two bicker. In all seriousness, he was looking forward to this. If the Neighbor's Club did activities like this from time to time, he wouldn't have to worry about being bored anytime soon.

* * *

"Alright, so did everyone make it?" Kodaka asked, they were all out in the middle of the woods, with heaps of supplies in their hands.

Yozora panted, tossing her stuff on the ground, "Damn…did we really have to go this far…?"

Cadmus copied her and put his stuff on the ground as well, "Alright, I guess this is our spot." On cue, everyone else started putting all of their stuff down. He looked around, the sun was making its downward crawl, but it wasn't quite a sunset yet. Approximately half of the Neighbor's Club wore clothing more appropriate for outdoor weather, (although Rika still found a need to put her lab coat over her heavy outdoor clothing for whatever reason). Cadmus, Kobato, and Maria were still wearing what they always wore, and Yozora was in a black track suit from head-to-toe.

"So…what should we do first?" Kodaka asked.

There was a pause, "I have no idea…" Cadmus said.

"We should probably pitch the tents." Yozora said.

Kodaka nodded, starting to get to work on his tent.

"Um…Kodaka…?" Sena asked, "Could you do mine…?" She asked sweetly.

"Sure, Sena." Kodaka smiled.

"Rika can set up own tent." Rika said, although the only thing in her hands was a small metal box. She fiddled with it until it grew into a nice cozy, simple room that looked like a five-star hotel compared to everyone else's tent.

Cadmus looked at Rika's invention in awe. It wasn't even a tent.

"I'll get my own tent as well." Yukimura smiled.

"Ku, ku, ku…my other half…will you do me the service of setting up my own encampment?" Kobato asked with a smile.

"Sure thing, Kobato." Kodaka said.

"Ooh, get mine too, big brother!" Maria cheered.

"He isn't your brother, dummy!" Kobato snapped.

"Shut it, poopy vampire!"

"Maria, Kodaka's got enough tents to worry about, I'll get yours." Cadmus said. If he didn't speak up Kodaka would've probably ended up with at least five tents.

"Okay." Maria said, "Thank you, Cadmus!"

"That's a good idea." Yozora smiled, "Scruffy, pitch my tent."

Cadmus glared at her, "Excuse me?"

"Did I stutter?"

"Oh, I'll pitch your tent alright…" He held a fist up, "I'll pitch your tent real good."

"Ew…" Yozora backed away, "That…that just sounds so wrong…"

Rika leaned over to Cadmus and whispered, "According to the urban dictionary, pitching a tent actually means to have an erection, so when you told Yozora that you would pitch her tent real good, it basically meant-

"Yes, thank you, Rika…" Cadmus growled, he went to work on his tent first, having no idea how to pitch a tent, but he figured he could practice with his own tent, and then Maria's and Yozora's would be put up better after some practice. He figured Maria's tent was the dark blue one on the ground, and Yozora's was the purple one. Once he put up his own black tent, he put up Maria's, and then Yozora's, panting a little bit as he finished.

"Yay!" Maria ran up and squeezed Cadmus, "Thank you, Cadmus!"

"You're welcome…" Cadmus choked, Maria's hugs could easily contest with his mother's.

Yozora examined her tent, running her hand along it and seeing if it would fall over, when it surpassed her tests, she looked at Cadmus, "Thank you."

Cadmus gave a slight nod in return, figuring if he celebrated the fact that Yozora genuinely thanked him, it would backfire and he would pretty much break even.

Kodaka brushed his hands off, "So, what's next?" He breathed heavily, having put up more tents than anyone else.

"I haven't the faintest idea." Sena said.

Kodaka looked out into the distance, "We should probably get some firewood, some of us could go and fetch it while I try and see if I can prepare us something to eat."

"Ooh, okay, hey Kobato…little cutie, do you want to get some firewood with me!" Sena loomed over Kobato.

"No!" Kobato backed away in fear.

Yozora stood in front of her, "Enough Meat, Sumeragi and I will get the wood, alright?"

Sena looked on with anger, and then jealousy as Kobato smiled at Yozora, "Why is it always Yozora, fine…" She pouted.

"It's alright, Sena, just stay back with me." Kodaka grabbed her hand in an effort to appease her.

Yozora looked on with jealous eyes, leaving in a huff with Kobato.

"Cadmus." Kodaka said, "You wouldn't mind helping those two, would you? I…I don't want them to get lost…"

"Hmm? Yeah, sure." Cadmus stretched his arms a little before running after them.

Yozora looked behind herself, hearing Cadmus's footsteps crunch through the leaves and twigs, "Scruffy, what are you doing here?"

"Had to tag along, Kodaka's orders." He said, "He was worried that you two would get lost or something."

"We are _not_ going to get lost, you idiot…if anything you would get lost." Yozora held a fist up.

"Look, there's no use arguing about it now." Cadmus said, "Besides, knowing you you're just gonna make _me_ carry everything, I thought you'd be happy."

Yozora lowered her fist slowly, considering it, "Well, if you want to, then I have no problem with it."

"Don't make it sound like I _want_ to!" Cadmus snapped.

"I wouldn't want to take the fun out of it for you, Scruffy…"

"I can't believe you…" He fumed. They started to make their trek a bit further in the woods, when Cadmus looked at Yozora's back, "Uh…Yozora, there's a spider on your shoulder…"

She stopped walking and closed her eyes, as always she was stoic as ever, "Get it off."

Cadmus inched closer towards her, grabbing the spider's leg and tossing it somewhere far away, "Gone."

She opened her eyes, "Thank you."

Cadmus still felt genuinely surprised that Yozora was able to thank him twice in one day without any venom or sarcasm attached to it. (He was also surprised at how calm Yozora was able to be with a spider on her, but one phenomenon at a time). It took them several minutes to even _begin_ to gather a substantial amount of firewood, but after a while Cadmus was holding half a dozen medium-sized pieces of wood, while Yozora and Kobato held the smaller timber.

"Ah, the night sky is approaching fast, isn't it, my Dark Knight?" Kobato smiled, "Now the night children can finally frolic and dance in the darkness without worry."

Yozora smiled, "Yeah, it does look pretty nice out."

Cadmus looked over at them, "No way, she calls you _'Dark Knight'_?"

She shrugged, "I have no issues with what Sumeragi names me."

"That's so cool…" Cadmus said, hiding his jealousy over it.

"She just…" Kobato got really quiet, "She always protects me from the monster…so…I appreciate it…"

"The…the monster?" Cadmus wondered, then he remembered how obsessive Sena acted towards her, having firsthand witnessed it at the campsite, he then started laughing, "That's actually pretty funny!" _Sena_ was the monster. He kept laughing for a while. Kobato had no mercy with nicknames, it seemed. You were either the Dark Knight, or you were a monster, Cadmus hoped sincerely that he would eventually earn a nickname similar to the former.

While Yozora would usually snap at Cadmus's high laugh, she smiled, naturally since the topic was focused around insulting Sena, "Come on Scruffy, it's not _that_ funny."

"It is to me…" Cadmus sighed.

Kobato screamed, causing Cadmus and Yozora to look back. Unwillingly, she had woken up a snake, it hissed at her, not too pleased about being disturbed. The trio was frozen by fear for a moment or two, and a moment afterwards, Yozora and Kobato both looked at Cadmus.

Cadmus blinked a few times, then he looked back at the girls, "What the hell are you two looking at me for?"

"I can see the others from here, just watch the snake for a second so Sumeragi and I can leave." Yozora said quietly.

"So…I'm fodder…basically?"

"Just watch it for like, two seconds, and then follow us."

"Alright, great plan. I'll let you know how everything turns out when I'm lying on the ground, poisoned to death…"

Yozora rolled her eyes and took a protective stance over Kobato, as both girls slowly backed away from the snake.

Cadmus watched the snake closely, the snake was getting bored if anything, and it started to slither off somewhere else. Once Yozora and Kobato were out of his line of sight, he booked it back to the others, his face incredibly pale.

"You okay, Cadmus?" Kodaka asked, "It sort of looks like you've seen a ghost."

"Pretty damn close…there was a snake."

"There're snakes out here?" Sena gasped, squeezing Kodaka out of fear.

Yozora rolled her eyes and scoffed, "It's just a snake, we'll all be fine."

"If it's any consolation, the snake went off in the direction opposite of our camp, so, we should be fine." Cadmus said.

Once the fire was lit, Kodaka started cooking for the club while everyone sat around the campfire.

"We should tell scary stories again!" Maria cheered.

"No, we're not doing that." Kodaka said, passing out soup for everyone, "The last time we did that Yozora told a story so frightening to you all that I had to chauffer you all to the bathroom, let's do something else."

Cadmus looked at Yozora as Kodaka said this, her purple eyes seemed to glow in the darkness of the night, and the fact that she was wearing all black gave yet another sinister heir to her. She gave a sly smile as she said, "It's not my fault you all scare so easily, I'll have to be more careful next time."

Cadmus looked ahead, taking a spoonful of his soup. He felt a chill, and it wasn't because of chill, as he was wearing a leather jacket and a long coat over that. He wondered what sort of story Yozora ended up telling them. Although, it was Yozora, maybe it was best if he didn't try to brainstorm down that avenue.

"But…don't people typically tell scary stories around the campfire…without that, what is there to talk about?" Sena asked.

"Sounds like your problem, Meat. It's pretty obvious if I tell another story it'll send everyone running to the hills." Yozora said.

Cadmus swallowed another spoonful of soup, "This is pretty good soup, Kodaka."

"Hmm?" Kodaka asked, "Oh, thanks." He smiled.

"Where'd you learn to cook like this?"

"Well, with my dad gone most of the time, I usually have to do what I can to make meals for myself and Kobato, so I've had a lot of opportunities to learn."

Cadmus paused. He didn't like how Kodaka _just_ said father, it also sounded like his father was at the very least a busy person. He felt a little guilty, he seemed to have the unfortunate knack for exposing backgrounds about people they didn't want to necessarily share.

"Ugh, aren't you guys getting along a little _too_ quickly?" Yozora looked from Cadmus to Kodaka, "I'd say judging by that, you want to almost be more than friends…"

"Don't say that!" Sena squealed, squeezing Kodaka close, "He's mine!"

"Relax, Sena." Cadmus said, "Yozora's just full of bullshit, again."

Yozora frowned, taking the last spoonful of her soup and setting her empty bowl down, "I'm going to sleep." She stood up.

"Me too." Cadmus said.

"Ooh! Big brother, can I sleep in your tent with you!" Maria smiled.

"Shut up, dummy, if anyone were to sleep in his tent, it would be me!" Kobato snapped.

"Kobato, why would I go through all that work putting up your tent if you were just going to share one with me anyway?" Kodaka asked.

"Well…I don't know…cause…"

"I already called him first, poopy vampire!" Maria said.

"But he's my brother, my real brother!"

Cadmus snuck away into his pitch-black tent before he could see the outcome of the firefight, just staring at the top of his tent as he laid on his back and it gradually quieted down as everyone got ready to go to sleep. He figured that tomorrow would hold all sorts of morning antics for the club, but he's been having fun with this group, so he would welcome it with open arms after a night of sleep.

* * *

 **A/N:** I could probably stretch their camping trip into another chapter at the very least. The ideas seem to be coming together for this, which I'm so glad for, because I really enjoy writing this. Thanks for reading :)


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Hello everyone, now it is finally time for chapter five! The camping shenanigans continue! Please enjoy!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

Cadmus was milling about the campground for a while now, he had woken up much earlier than anyone else, so early that he had practically seen the sun rise from the nothingness of the horizon. He yawned for the umpteenth time, hoping dearly that someone would wake up soon to at least keep him occupied. So the second he smelled something from inside Rika's tent, (more like five-star hotel bedroom), he inched towards the interior, blindly following the smell of whatever was cooking.

Rika's 'tent' looked just as beautiful on the inside as it did on the outside. It was lined with red carpets and chandeliers dotted all over the ceiling, with a large, elegant table before him. Ahead of him it looked like more rooms awaited in the distance. _I don't remember it looking this big on the outside…_

"Oh, Cadmus!" Rika ran in from another room, "Rika's surprised that you're up so early! She thought she would have to wait at least another few hours to dine with someone!"

Cadmus scratched the back of his head, "Well…I kinda…never fell asleep…so…I cheated…"

"You never fell asleep?" Rika asked, "Aw…not used to the wilderness?" She leaned forward and whispered into his ear, "It's okay, Rika likes city boys…"

Cadmus took a step or two back, then he looked around, "Doesn't it…sort of make it pointless to camp if you…just bring all the comforts of home…out here anyway?"

"Not at all."

He was surprised she had an answer prepared so quickly, so he figured making another argument against her flawless tent was pointless, "So…all that food…you got there…"

"Yes! Help yourself! Rika made enough for everyone! It's just that…no one else is awake yet…"

Cadmus took a seat and started ravenously devouring the breakfast in front of him, then he paused and looked around, wondering if he should be eating his breakfast alone.

Rika sat across from him, "So what do you think of the Neighbor's Club?"

"It's great." Cadmus said after a swallow, "I like it." He had never been in a club before, so a sensation such as this was both new and thrilling towards him. In these fleeting days he already knew more about his club-mates than he did his so called 'friends' or acquaintances he bumped into in school.

"Rika's so glad! You seem to be getting along with everyone okay."

"Yeah, you guys are great. Especially Kodaka. I heard throughout the school that he was some delinquent or something, but he's actually a pretty good guy."

"Aw…Cadmus, you dirty dog, you. Kodaka's already dating Sena…as much as Rika would love to see the two of you together, it would be wrong."

He blushed, "What? No…I…I didn't mean that." He said, then he muttered quietly, "I like girls…"

"Ooh!" Rika cooed, "With of us girls in the Neighbor's Club do you like?"

"What? I didn't mean _that_ either! I…I'm not interested in anyone…"

Rika took a pause, stirring her tea with a little spoon, "Rika wanted to ask you something…"

"Oh boy…"

"How did you get Yozora back to the club?"

"Hmm?" This was totally out of leftfield, he thought she was going to ask him about his favorite adult-movie or video game, a typical Rika question. For her to be so serious all of sudden, it threw him for more than a loop.

"Rika just finds it hard to believe that a total stranger like you could talk someone like Yozora into going back to a place she ran away from."

Cadmus nodded, Rika had a point, looking back on it now, it was probably more of dumb luck than anything that Yozora bothered to listen to him.

"So how did you do it?"

"Oh my god, I feel like trying to push a dump truck uphill with your bare hands would be an easier time than trying to reason with _her_ …"

Rika laughed, "Yes, she was always quite stubborn…" She sighed, "But Rika's a little worried about her. Rika wishes that Yozora could see her as a friend."

"Tell me about it." Cadmus said. He nearly forgot about her little outburst a few days ago. She didn't see any of them as friend. Not even Kodaka, and he was pretty sure she still had strong leftover feelings for him too, "You're right to be worried…" He took a deep breath, "She…she's been through a lot…" He said, then when he realized it made him sound so knowledgeable about her, he hastily added, "I think."

"So how did you get her back here?"

He shrugged, "It wasn't pretty…we kinda just yelled at each other for a few nights. I bet she figured coming back to the club versus yelling at me would be the lesser of two evils."

"Don't take it personally, she can be like that to everyone."

He looked down at his empty plate, "But…" He started, but then stopped in a defeated tone. She couldn't have been like this all her life, could she? Was there an uphill for her? Or was it none of their business? Maybe Yozora was just Yozora and they needed to leave it alone, forcing change on a person isn't becoming of someone in a club specifically designed to make friends, but what if said change was good, or helpful? Cadmus had no idea, he just knew if he kept thinking about this, it would give him a headache. He rose from his seat.

"Hmm? Cadmus?" Rika asked.

"I gotta go…" Cadmus said, "I'll be back later."

"Alright." Rika said, then she followed him to the exit, "Rika enjoyed your company." She whispered.

Cadmus felt a chill, "Please don't say it like that…"

* * *

Sure enough, even with his lengthy breakfast with Rika, no one else was awake yet. Still, it was a nice chat he had with Rika, (ignoring her more creepy moments). What felt nice to him most of all was that she seemed to be just as concerned with Yozora as he was.

He strolled a bit away from the campsite, seeing a nice river ahead of him, it was then he noticed a familiar figure fishing.

"Kodaka?" He asked.

"Oh, hey Cadmus." Kodaka smiled.

"I had no idea that you fished."

"Oh yeah, I've been fishing ever since I was a little kid." He said, attentively watching the river in case he would get a bite on his line.

Cadmus crossed his arms and stood by his side, watching him fish for a minute or two, then he said, "Hey man, I gotta say, thanks for being so welcoming to me and everything. I appreciate it." He smiled. Truthfully, Kodaka was the most straightforward person towards him, it was sort of refreshing to have such a nice, clear-cut comrade when the rest of the club members were a bunch of girls with crazy quirks.

"What? It's nothing." Kodaka chuckled, "Honestly, I sort of feel for you."

"Hmm?"

"I know how it feels to be seen as a delinquent and be isolated from others." He shrugged, "Because of my hair and my eyes, everyone's usually scared of me, you must have similar problems, so in a way I can sort of relate to you."

Cadmus looked down at himself, figuring that Kodaka had a point, "Yeah, I guess us delinquents have to stick together, right?"

He snickered, "Exactly."

"I'm serious though. We're the only two dudes in the club, we gotta stick together in case those girls try to gang up on us."

He laughed, "I have a feeling that's inevitable though."

"Yeah, I guess you're right…" He said, "Rika especially acts…strong…towards me…"

"Oh, don't worry, she does that to me as well. It's nothing new for her. Also, expect a lot of jokes paring us together in the future. Rika is a big fan of yaoi so it wouldn't surprise me if she kept that joke alive for as long as possible."

"But…what is yaoi…?"

He chuckled, "I don't think it would be in my place to tell you what it is."

There was a pause, "So how long have you been awake?"

"Pretty long, actually." Kodaka said, "I've just been down here fishing, that's all. I tried to wake Sena up, but she murmured something about needing her beauty sleep. So…here I am."

Cadmus snickered. He then watched silently as Kodaka waited for a bite for a few more moments. Then a thought came to him. Not only was Kodaka a straightforward guy, but he also seemed quite knowledgeable about the club members. Any of them. Perhaps Cadmus could use this to his advantage. Considering he knew little to nothing about any of them, it would only be fair.

"So…Yozora…" Cadmus said.

"Yozora?" Kodaka mirrored, a bit dumbstruck, "Were…were we talking about her?"

"No. But I gotta say, she's off." He said, "What's her deal?"

He snickered, then he laughed, once he calmed down he said, "I've never heard it asked so casually, that's all. What's Yozora's deal…wow…I wish it were that simple."

"You guys knew each other since you were young, right?" He asked, "So it stands to reason that you would know more about her than anyone else."

"Yes, that's right, we knew each other for a while now." He looked at him, "How much did Yozora tell you about this?"

He shrugged, "Enough, I guess. I mean, I lost count of how many nights we spend screaming at each other."

He nodded, "Well, many years ago, we were friends. She always called me Taka, and I always called her Sora. The trouble was that I didn't know Sora was actually a girl…"

"Wait." Cadmus paused, "You…didn't know she was a girl…?"

He shook his head, "She always wore bulky clothes and a baseball hat. I could never tell. It actually took me months in the Neighbor's Club to actually figure out that Yozora _was_ in fact Sora."

"Hmm…really?" Cadmus said, "She uh…left that part out for me…"

"She did?" He asked.

He nodded, now thoroughly annoyed with her. How much else of the story was conveniently left out? He would be shocked if she told him ten percent of the actual story.

"Well, the thing is, Yozora's hair used to be very long. Like as long as Sena's, maybe even longer. But, one time, when we were watching fireworks, some of the sparks got into Yozora's hair, and it got burnt pretty bad, I dumped a bucket of water on her…but…she was still pretty embarrassed. She didn't show up to the club for a week after that. And when she did come back, she cut her hair short, like how you see it today. Thing is, it looked exactly like how Sora kept his, or rather, _her_ hair. So once she cut her hair I immediately recognized her as my childhood friend."

Cadmus's eyes widened with each sentence of the story Kodaka gave. He sat in the grass, his face losing a little bit of color. He finally knew the backstory to Yozora's hair. Her hair. He felt a chill, wasn't that the _first_ thing he made fun of when they met that night? "Oh my god…"

"Cadmus?" Kodaka looked back, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." _I'm such a dick._ "Well, at least I know what she meant when she said she burnt her hair." He said, referencing her ironically proud statement of hitting 'rock bottom.'

Kodaka nodded, he probably felt the same way about Yozora's self-torture as Cadmus did.

"But did she really throw up on someone too? And plagiarize?"

He nodded, "The first thing was because she rode the Black Dragon eight times in a row, because she and Sena were having some sort of contest…"

"Damn…I've heard about that ride…that's intense…" He said.

"Yeah, the plagiarism thing I can't really defend though, I don't know what she was thinking…" He sighed.

"So, you must be worried about her then."

He nodded, "Everyone in the club is. Even Sena, and I know for a fact those two don't get along."

"Yeah, Rika and I were just talking about it. She needs help." He said.

Kodaka nodded, then he looked back and squinted, "Crap, I think Sena's calling me…" He said, "Cadmus, could you watch the pole for me? I'll be back in five minutes…give or take…"

"Watch the pole?" Cadmus asked, "I…I don't know, I don't fish much…"

"It's simple, just watch the water, and if you feel a tug, then reel it in." Kodaka said, Cadmus didn't have much time to argue, as Kodaka jammed the rod in his hands and ran off rather quickly.

Cadmus sighed and watched the river. Whatever Sena wanted better have been important. Now he had to stand at attention and wait to see if there was a bite. He much preferred sitting, especially since he had virtually no sleep last night. Instead however, he was stuck with a bloodshot glare towards the river. Although, when Kodaka was fishing, _nothing_ was biting, so it stood to reason that Cadmus wouldn't get anything either. But it would work out just for Cadmus's crummy luck for there to be a bite on the line in the five or ten minutes of him watching the pole.

"Didn't know you fished, Scruffy." He heard a smooth, deep voice behind him.

"It's not mine." Cadmus said, "It's Kodaka's. He was having me watch it."

"Man, you guys aren't even trying to pretend that you aren't best friends."

Cadmus shrugged, "I mean, we're the only two guys in the club, so…there's that…"

There was a pause. Cadmus felt her warm gaze on his back. Were the two of them really not going to say anything? He swallowed hard, trying to think of something to bring up to break up the tension, "So…how'd you sleep last night?"

"I slept fine. I mean, it wasn't a bed, but I managed." Yozora said, "What about you?"

"…my tent collapsed on me in the middle of the night and woke me up…so then I just stared at the stars all night…"

Yozora snickered for a few seconds, then she burst out laughing. Cadmus felt an odd mixture of annoyance yet relief that she could react so lightheartedly in the first place.

"I'm not complaining." He said, trying to talk over her laughter, "It was a beautiful night sky out, it's not like it was boring…"

Cadmus suddenly felt a tug on his fishing pole, a strong one at that, "Shit…"

"What is it?"

"I…didn't think I'd catch something while Kodaka wasn't here…" He pulled on it, "Damn it…why the hell is it so heavy!"

"Well, don't let it get away, reel it in!"

"I'm trying." He grit his teeth, "What the hell do the fish eat, these days?"

"Ugh, don't be pathetic." He felt her thin arms wrap around his waist, "Now, pull!" She barked.

Cadmus blushed, his face had never felt so hot. If he didn't focus soon, he was going to drop the fishing rod and lose the fish. He pulled even harder, with Yozora pulling on him. "Damn it…you're gonna tear me in half before we catch whatever the hell it is down there!"

"Come on, just pull harder!"

"I'm pretty sure I'm pulling as hard as I can!"

The line abruptly snapped upward, as a boot flew in the air. Cadmus dropped the rod with a _snap!_ With the momentum constantly pulling the both of them towards the river now suddenly gone, they both fell back, Cadmus a bit more so.

Yozora gasped as she hit the ground, Cadmus fell back about ready to land on top of her. And by the way they were positioned, she pretty much had a one way ticket to kissing the two back pockets of his jeans when he landed on her face.

Cadmus got up quickly once he fell, he felt for any bruises, then he looked ahead, "Oh, all that for a stupid boot, what a freaking waste of time that was, right?" He smiled at Yozora.

Yozora sat up, shivering. Her face was beet red, the second her eyes met his, she looked away.

"Is…something wrong-

"No! Not at all." She stood up, "I…I think I'll go." She got up and walked away.

Cadmus looked on in confusion, he had never seen her face that red. He then looked ahead to the river, seeing the boot that was just sitting there. The boot that had caused the both of them so much trouble. But why did Yozora leave so suddenly? He then blushed and felt his waist, where her arms were, why did he feel so warm whenever he thought about that? Not the fishing part, he could've cared less about any of that, but he had no idea what he was feeling right now.

* * *

 **A/N:** Again, I have no idea where I'm going with this. I have milestones in mind, but I sort of need scenes to connect them, if you know what I mean. I'm still having a lot of fun with this, regardless, and it's not a challenge I haven't done before, so I'll report back with chapter six as soon as I'm able. Until next time!


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Hello everyone, yes, I'm finally back again, after an almost literal year! I will say this on my other stories as well, but now with summer around the corner, I'm going to try and work on as many of my stories as possible, Vampire the Masquerade, Fairy Tail, and this one. So without further ado, please enjoy this chapter, and hopefully I'll have chapter seven up soon!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

It was strange, it felt as though merely moments ago that he was out camping with the neighbors club, but now he was back at school, in the clubroom. When did they get home? Did he talk to his mother? Get ready for school the next day? He must have, but he must also have been so tired that he simply didn't bother remembering any of it.

His head was on the table, as if he were trying to go to sleep. That camping trip really did a number on him. First of all, his tent collapsed around him at night, so he didn't really _sleep_ for the duration of the trip. Then there was all the chaos and drama. Oh well, it still beat lounging around at home, doing nothing. Any time he could spend away from his father was a victory to him in some way, shape, or form.

"Kobato, that's the answer you came up with?" Kodaka asked, comparing their answers, "This…this isn't right…at all…"

"Huh? It isn't?" Kobato asked, her vampire façade completely fading away.

Cadmus held a hand over his mouth as he yawned, "Uh…jeez…how the hell do you guys do it?" He asked, trying to sit up straight.

Sena stared at him blankly, "Do what?"

"This…" He held his hands out, gesturing the club room, "Going to school for like, eight hours a day, and _then_ a club…"

She still looked a bit confused, "It's…not really that difficult…this…isn't even a strenuous club, you know. Like, swim club, or basketball, or, an actual _sport_. We kind of just hang out here…"

"If you can't take the heat, then get out." Yozora turned a page in her book.

Cadmus sighed, "Chipper, as always, Yozora. Alright, forget I said anything…"

"So…" Rika clasped her hands together, standing expectantly next to Cadmus, "How was your first time with us?"

She _really_ had to say it like that, didn't she? He gave a small smile nonetheless, "It was nice, I had fun. I'm just still a little tired, that's all."

"Yeah, it was fun, except you can't fish to save your life." Yozora said.

He rolled his eyes. Somehow, Yozora was even acting _more_ standoffish to him than usual, which, he didn't think it was possible in the slightest. Serves him right to underestimate her, he supposed. Did he do something to piss her off, even more? How? How is something like that even possible?

"Hey…where's that one red-headed chick? The one who watches the door?" Cadmus asked, "What was her name, Yukimura?"

"Hmm?" Rika looked at the door, "Rika hasn't seen her today, maybe she wasn't feeling well."

"Hmm, I hope she didn't catch something while we were camping."

"Aw, is Cadmus worried?" Rika leaned in, a bit too close for Cadmus's comfort.

"Hey…" He scooted back, "I mean, yeah, I am…but…probably not in the way that you're thinking…"

"Well, you did tell me that you liked girls during the trip." Her grin grew.

"Yeah…but…not anyone in the club…"

"Really? Then who's your type?"

He swallowed hard, luckily for him, their conversation was interrupted by Yozora coughing for quite a long while.

She cleared her throat, "Yeah, I think I'm starting to get something too. Ugh, serves me right for going to the stupid outdoors…"

"Do you think _everything's_ stupid?" Cadmus frowned.

"Whatever, save me the optimistic pep talk, edge lord…" She rolled her eyes.

"Jeez…"

"Well, I had a good time at least." Kodaka smiled.

"Me too." Sena smiled as well, reaching for Kodaka's hand. Of course, once their hands met, Yozora looked both enraged and uncomfortable, like she wanted to murder seventeen people. Which, at this point was just par for the course. Any time Sena and Kodaka did the most _minor_ of couple's stuff, it irritated Yozora to no end.

It would usually deepen her scowl, like how she was right now. But Cadmus couldn't help but notice a sadness within her expression. An insecurity as well. She wanted to show the outside world that she was mad, but it was clear that she was just as depressed as she was infuriated. She was in pain, jealousy wrapped around her body so many times it was hard to see the girl herself sometimes.

It was cute.

Cadmus sighed and buried his face back into his folded arms, trying to nap, or at least rest as he overheard the mindless conversation going on. How much homework did he have? Enough, he figured. Now it was even worse with his homework, because at least before he joined the club the sun was at least still in the sky. Nowadays by the time he left, half the damn sun was set already. Which meant avoiding his father was by no means an easy task in the slightest.

Wait, wait, wait, back up a minute there.

Did he just call Yozora cute?

In his head, albeit, but, what? Where did that come from? He swallowed hard. The long day got to him, that's all. It couldn't have been anything else. He couldn't, he reasoned as he felt his face began to heat up pink, there's just no way.

"Uh…Cadmus…?" He heard Sena's voice, "Are you okay, there? Your face is like, totally red…"

"Huh…?" Cadmus asked. _Shit, just lie. Lie! Say anything!_ "Uh…yeah…I'm uh…fine…I'm just…hot, that's all."

"Maybe wearing seven thousand black jackets isn't the smartest idea then, is it Scruffy?" Yozora turned a page in her book.

"Pfft, I'll be fine, jeez…" He said, "Besides, I _loathe_ the school uniform with a passion, once school's out and the club activities start, I change into this…I refuse to be seen in that absurd getup for more than the allotted time a school day provides."

Kodaka shrugged and mentioned quietly that the school uniform didn't really bother him.

The door creaked open, and Yukimura entered, "Hello, everyone." She smiled, "Sorry I'm late."

"Yukimura?" Cadmus asked, "Where the hell have you been?"

"Yeah, Cadmus was worried!" Rika smiled, putting _way_ too much emphasis into the delivery.

"Tch." He said, "I was. A little. Can we move on from that?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was visiting the Student Council." Yukimura said, "They said that there was a blood drive coming to the school tomorrow."

Cadmus looked around, for some reason, when she mentioned the Student Council, every club member looked a bit dazed, at the very least. Angered, annoyed, like there was some sort of baggage hidden deep within them somewhere. Did the Student Council do something to all of them at some point?

And wait. Blood drive? Cadmus started shivering immensely, he hugged himself in a desperate bid to look as though he wasn't shaking.

"I think I'm going to give some tomorrow, is anyone else?" Yukimura asked.

"Sure thing, why not?" Kodaka said.

"Ooh, in that case, I'll go with you." Sena said.

"Rika would love to go." Rika said.

Yozora gave a small cough, "I guess I'm out." She said, "Unless I want to infect half the country, my blood isn't going to do them any good."

Cadmus froze as everyone looked at him, his shivering not getting any better with all the attention, "What? What the hell are you guys looking at?"

"Did you want to give blood, Cadmus?" Yukimura asked.

"No thanks." Cadmus said.

"Aw, are you sure?"

"How come you're shivering?" Sena asked, "I thought you just said you were hot…"

"I'm…completely fine…" He argued, mildly slamming a fist on the table to change the subject, "So! What's the next activity we could all do together as a club, hmm?"

"Hmm." Yozora looked up from her book, "I have no idea."

"Should we do something outdoorsy again?" Yukimura asked.

Kodaka thought for a moment or two, "We could always to karaoke again."

"Again?" Sena asked.

"Yeah, why not?"

"You guys did karaoke?" Cadmus asked.

Kodaka nodded, "We did. Though, at least partially it was a bit weird."

"Weird? What was weird about it?" Yozora asked.

"You freaked out when you realized how much they would be charging six people for one room. So you and Sena bought a room to yourself for some reason. Then the others and I had our own room." He said, "For a club activity, it was oddly segregated…"

There was a pause. Until Cadmus burst out laughing. "Ha, ha, ha! You guys bought separate rooms!" He asked, "Oh my god, what a train wreck! I thought you were supposed to do those with your friends!" He laughed like a jackal.

"Shut up, the price for all six of us was way too high…" Yozora frowned.

"It was all Yozora's stupid idea anyway…" Sena muttered.

"So you two would be open to doing it again, as an actual group?" Kodaka asked.

Yozora paused, then she nodded, "Yes, why not? We may as well take another crack at it, seeing as how last time occurred in the way that it did."

"Hold on, you can sing, right?" Sena looked at Cadmus, like it actually _mattered_ if he could sing or not.

He raised a brow, "Uh, yeah, why?"

"Well, everyone in the club can sing, even stupid Yozora, so you'd better keep up with the status quo."

Rika nodded, "Sena's right, everyone in the club has such a beautiful voice…and well…you…you…you know…"

"What?" Cadmus asked.

"Well, don't take offense from Rika's statement…but…"

"I can't exactly picture someone with a voice like yours singing, that's all." Kodaka tried to put it gently.

"You sound like a chain-smoking punk." Sena said a bit more bluntly.

"I knew it!" Maria pipped up from where she was sitting on the couch.

"I resent that." Cadmus narrowed his eyes at Sena, "I can sing just fine. I bet you can too, even though you sound like a spoiled princess."

"Hey!" Sena objected, while Yozora meanwhile had a good laugh.

"Come on Meat, he's just calling it how he sees it." She snickered.

"Oh yeah, like that time he said you were full of shit?" Sena countered.

"Knock it off guys." Kodaka frowned.

Cadmus smiled, "Look, don't any of you guys worry about it. I'm sure I'll blow you all away."

"Hmm, last time we did this it was over the summer." Yozora put her book down, "I'm not sure how I feel about doing it on a school night, we could cut club short today just to get there before it closes."

"Fine by me." Cadmus shrugged, when no one else voiced an argument, Yozora told them that they had half an hour to get ready for the karaoke. Most of the club left, while Cadmus stayed behind, making sure he had everything ready.

The door to the clubroom opened as Kodaka walked in, "Oh, Cadmus, good, you're still here."

"Hey Kodaka." Cadmus rose from his seat, "What's up?"

"I don't mean to be dramatic or anything, but I feel as though I should warn you about something."

He gave a short nod, "Go ahead."

"Well…" He put a hand on the back of his head, "You see…when this first started, things were…I don't know, a little hectic? Basically before I started dating Sena…the girls kind of saw it as a free for all regarding me…it…it led to a lot of hurt feelings later down the line…"

"I get it. The guy-to-girl ratio is completely screwed up, so you were the target of a lot of romantic frustrations."

"Yeah, sort of…exactly that…but…uh…"

"But what?" He crossed his arms.

"See, I'm with Sena…and you're…well…"

"I'm what?"

"You're single, and this club is like, ninety percent girls." He said, "I'm just trying to warn you in advance, in case what happened to me happens to you."

He nodded, "I appreciate it."

"Some of them can be more forward than others."

"Yeah, Rika made that pretty clear today."

He smiled, "If you ever need any help or something, just talk to me, okay?"

Cadmus smiled back, "Of course. Thanks for helping a brother out."

He nodded, "I guess we should get going, Yozora told me we're going to the same place as last time."

"Right. I'll catch up."

Kodaka nodded and he left. Cadmus took a deep breath. Luckily for him, he wasn't interested in any of the girls in the Neighbors Club, and if any of them approached him with something romantic, he could shoot them down, easily.

Well, there may have been one person that interested him.

She was so dark and mysterious, quick as a whip and easily the smartest person in the club. She also held the leadership position, which, honestly may not have been much, but it did things to Cadmus. Her hair may have looked boyish at that length, but after getting used to it, it looked quite cute on her, and her purple eyes nearly cut through his soul.

He felt his face heat up. He growled and kicking the table, nearly overturning it. _I do not like Yozora. I do not like Yozora. I do not like Yozora._

One thing Cadmus enjoyed on the walk to the karaoke box was that he was actually with people. People he could call his friends (even though that seemed to be a foreign concept to the others). It made him walk with a bit of spring in his step, or at the very least it boosted a very unneeded ego in him. By now, the sun was setting quite nicely, and there was an occasional breeze which blew at his long coat, ruffling it slightly.

Something he found strange was what Yozora was wearing, all the other girls were in nice clothes for a night out, but Yozora was in a black track suit. In fact, it was probably the same one she used for their camping trip.

He walked to up to her side, "Hey, what's with you?" He asked, when she raised a brow, he said, "You look like you're about ready to mug someone."

"Ugh, pfft, did you seriously just say that? Considering what you look like?" She snapped.

"Yeah right, you look _way_ more like a mugger in that than I do."

"I do not!"

They butt heads, "You do so! I'll prove it!"

"How?"

He faced ahead, "Hey guys, who looks like the bigger mugger, me or Yozora?"

"Yozora." Sena said, without even turning around to look at either of them.

"Come on, you knew Meat-bags was going to throw me under the bus either way!" Yozora frowned.

Cadmus snickered, "The results don't lie…"

"Come on guys, do we really have to argue about this?" Kodaka asked.

"Rika thinks that Cadmus looks more like a mugger!" Rika said, though it was more of swooning, than plain speaking, "Oh…he'd take Rika out back, steal all her money, and then—"

Cadmus loudly cleared his throat, as he and Yozora's cheeks went pink, "Alright, maybe asking the other members of the club _wasn't_ a good idea…"

"I'm so excited to sing! Big brother, can I sing first!" Maria smiled up at Kodaka as they entered the karaoke box.

"No, I'm going to sing first!" Kobato argued.

"No, I'm going first, poopy vampire!"

"Oh, that's right." Kodaka said, "I forgot that Maria didn't go with us last time."

Yozora nodded, noticing that the clerk recognized them from the previous time they sang, and wilted accordingly, "And with Scruffy here too, that brings our total up to eight instead of six." She sighed, "I still think it's stupid that we get charged six times the normal amount depending on the amount of people, or at least eight times in this case, what does it matter if we're using _one_ room?"

"It's fine, I'll just pay, Yozora." Sena reached into her purse.

"Pfft, yeah right, Meat, as the Club President, I'll do it."

"It's fine, I know how much of a commoner you are, I'll handle it."

"I don't need your damn help!"

Cadmus slapped a large bill on the counter, "Done." He said, "We get that room over there." He pointed.

Yozora and Sena looked at Cadmus as if he had three heads, but once they entered the room, they chose to argue about something else, "We're not going to tie this time, that's for sure." Yozora said.

"You bet, cause I'm gonna get a better score than you!" Sena said.

"I doubt it." Yozora said.

Cadmus sat next to Kodaka, as most of the members were picking out their songs, "There's a scoring system on this?"

"It's optional, but yeah." Kodaka said.

"And we're going to have it on the whole time." Yozora said, "So we can just see how _badly_ I beat Meat."

"Yeah…scoring all the members on how well they sing…no pressure at all…" Cadmus mumbled.

Yozora coughed for a bit, "Damn it…I…I'm not sure I can sing like this."

"Ha! I win by default!" Sena cheered.

"Aw, what? Come on." Cadmus smiled, "You gotta sing just one." He looked at Yozora, "I want to hear you sing."

"Fine." She conceded. However, Maria already stole the first slot of singing time, and Kobato adamantly _had_ to go after her.

Maria and Kobato were pretty good, (well, Maria had the _spirit_ of singing in her, at least…). Cadmus was surprised at, for their young ages, how well they could sing. They could really turn it into a talent if they wanted to.

He was surprised at how well Yukimura and Rika could sing too. He supposed Sena was right and that every at the club did at least have a raw talent for singing. He could have gone without Rika making suggestive moves and kisses to the microphone, however.

"Well, I guess it just leaves us four." Kodaka said, looking at himself, Sena, Yozora, and Cadmus.

"Please tell me we can use a different mike…" Cadmus said.

"I say the newbie should go first." Sena said, making everyone stare at Cadmus.

He gave a big grin, "Ladies first."

"Hmm…" Sena flipped her hair and faced the microphone, "I suppose you do have _some_ manners, after all."

"I mean, they always say you gotta save the best for last." Cadmus said.

"Ugh." Sena frowned, "I'm going to destroy you!"

Yozora snickered, leaning towards Cadmus, "Take her down. Do anything you can to outscore her…"

Cadmus turned pink. Yozora being this close to his ear and the side of his face was making him feel warm, and slightly uneasy, "Uh-huh…r-right…of course I will."

Sena rolled her eyes, going next. She was followed by Kodaka, and honestly, those two would be hard to beat. They scored the highest out of anyone so far.

"Damn…" Cadmus said.

"I suppose I'll go next." Yozora stood up, "Let me see if I can get a glass of water first." She left the room.

Cadmus was a bit jittery. It wasn't about his _own_ performance, no. He sings just as much as he plays guitar, so it would probably go over fine. He was about to hear Yozora sing, which, wasn't a big deal, right? She was just another one of the club members.

Before now, everyone picked fast, upbeat songs, with the exception of Sena, who chose a ballad. Yozora also chose a slower song, and the emotion in her voice really got to Cadmus. She had a smooth, deep voice, which, as Cadmus expected sounded nice while she was just _talking_ , but now she was singing, and it made Cadmus freeze up with too many feelings at once.

She sighed as she finished, "That could have been better, if I wasn't sick…"

Cadmus swallowed hard, he felt near his eyes feeling that they were wet. _Damn it, did she really sing so good that it made me cry?_ He blinked his tears away, just in time too, as everyone looked at him, "Alright, your turn, Scruffy." Yozora said.

"Right." Cadmus got up, "Let me pick a song…" He looked through the choices, "Aw, what the hell, there's no metal? Why the hell would there be no metal? This is an outrage!"

"Idiot, you're supposed to pick your song _in advance_." Yozora said, "So we're not all sitting here waiting…"

"Hmm, if you can't even pick a song, then you won't be able to out-sing me." Sena said.

"Will you two shut up?" Cadmus looked back, sighing, "I'll have to go for rock then, hope I can get a feel for it."

Cadmus stepped up to the microphone, cracking his neck a few times as the thundering guitars made their entrance. His song was neither fast and upbeat nor a sad ballad. It was anger personified. It was about vengeance and striking back against your enemies. Judging by the looks on most of the club members, they didn't expect him to sing so well with how his natural speaking voice sounded.

He panted as the outro played out for a while. He turned to the others, "So how was that?" He asked.

A silence.

"It was pretty nice." Kodaka smiled.

"It sounded like you wanted to kill hundreds of people." Sena said.

"Rika is so wet right now…" Rika whispered.

"Tch, everybody's a critic…" Cadmus sat in between Kodaka and Yozora.

"It was good." Yozora smiled, "I liked it."

Cadmus smiled back, "Thanks."

"Look, it's the final scores!" Rika pointed.

All of the club members paused, waiting as the results were displayed.

"Ha!" Yozora stood up, nearly jumping for joy, "I knew I'd win! I just knew it!" She said, "Huh, ninety-seven percent, bet it'd be a-hundred if I felt a little better."

"Fourth place?" Sena pulled at her hair, "No! This…this must be a mistake! A malfunction of like, epic proportions! Those results don't count!"

Cadmus laughed, "Ha, ha, ha! Silver medal, eat it!" He held two fingers out, "Second place!"

"Nice job." Kodaka said, "But given how you sang, I'm not surprised that you got second." He smiled.

He grinned back, taking a closer look at the scoreboard. He and Yozora, sharing second and first place respectively, but Kodaka wasn't far behind, he only lost by a point or two, and Sena was under him.

Cadmus felt good as they were all ready to leave. He had a bustling group of new friends, he sang his heart out, and the cycle was most likely going to repeat tomorrow, what could ruin a night like this?

Yukimura saying, "I can't wait to see everyone at the blood drive tomorrow!"

 _Shit._

* * *

 **A/N:** Yeah, I know I'm borrowing a bit more source material from the show, but the next chapter has the blood drive, and luckily that's an original idea. Will Cadmus be able to worm his way out of it? More importantly, will his feelings for Yozora go away, or get worse? Thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Hello, and here's chapter seven finally! Damn, I wish I was able to upload these more quickly, but I'm just pleased that I've gotten as far as I have. Enjoy the chapter and the Neighbor's Club shenanigans!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

He was surprised as the doors to the clubroom opened, "Jeez…I must be early…" Cadmus remarked, seeing Yozora sitting in her typical spot at the head of the table, "We're the only ones here."

Yozora looked up from her book, giving him a slight nod of acknowledgement, before getting back to reading.

He sat in the chair next to her, "So how come you're so early?"

She turned a page, "I don't know, sometimes I like to sneak in when it's quiet just to get more time to read." She said, "Before the idiots come in and deafen me."

"Jeez, isn't that a little harsh?"

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."

"So why are you running this club if you think everyone who's in it is an idiot?"

"That story would be way too long to tell, Scruffy."

He sighed, part of him having a feeling he already knew the answer to that question before he asked it, "You must shred through those books. What are they, novels or something? Someone as smart as you has gotta be fast with that."

"Tch, yeah, unlike you, I'm not an academic failure."

"What the hell?" He frowned, "I'm just trying to be nice."

"You mean fake."

"I mean _nice_." He narrowed his eyes, "Just because you're too damn antisocial to know what the hell being nice is, doesn't mean that I'm just some fake asshole, got it?"

She scowled at him, and he scowled right back. They held this angry stare down for quite a while.

At least until Yozora fell into a coughing fit.

He was a man of fury, yes, but, it wasn't long until rue smacked him in the heart next, "Look…I'm sorry…I didn't mean that…too far…"

"Ugh, you can't just say 'sorry' and wipe it all away like it never happened!"

"No, I mean it." He stood up and started pacing uneasily, "I've been…on edge about something…recently…" He shivered.

"What about?"

He swallowed hard, she asked it so quickly and straightforwardly. He sat back in his seat, shaking even more, "Uh…"

"What the hell are you so scared about?" She asked, watching him get even more uneasy, "Afraid of giving blood or something?"

"Something like that…" He said.

She shrugged, "Then you can just stay with me while everyone else gets their blood taken. They're probably out doing that right now, considering it's just me and you right now."

He gave a small nod, "You're right." He said.

The door slammed open, with the remainder of the Neighbor's Club pouring in, "Are you guys ready?" Yukimura asked.

"What?" Yozora asked, "Are you all deaf, I told you, I was sick. There's no point in me going…"

"We weren't talking about _you_." Sena said, rolling her eyes, "Ugh, who would want _Yozora's_ blood, seriously? Like, gross…"

"Pfft, and your blood would probably drop people's IQ points…" She muttered, Cadmus burst out laughing at the comment.

Sena rolled her eyes, "We're here for him." She nodded at Cadmus, "Are you coming or what?"

"No…" Cadmus quivered, "I'm not coming…"

"Why not? Did you catch Yozora's cold or something?"

"Uh…uh…yeah…that's right…got it real bad…"

"Bullshit, you so did not." Yozora said, "I haven't heard you cough _once_."

Cadmus began an over-the-top attempt at hacking up a lung, "Oh…there it is…"

"Are you sure, Cadmus?" Yukimura asked, "It's for a good cause."

"I know it is." Cadmus said, "It's not that…that I don't _want to_ …it's just…"

"Guys, if he doesn't want to do it, he doesn't want to do it." Kodaka said.

"But he should." Sena said, leaning in, "What, are you scared of getting your blood taken or something?"

Cadmus scooted his chair back, making a face at her chest for a moment or two, "That's my business…got it? Will you get those water balloons out of my face?"

There was a pause. Of course, Sena looked offended, but it was nearly drowned out by Yozora's laughter, "Water balloons…that's a good one, Scruffy."

"Ugh, don't give Yozora _ammunition!_ " Sena said.

Cadmus laughed and laughed, "I have to admit, that's a pretty good one."

"Fine, we'll just go without you." Sena said, "A simple 'no' would have sufficed."

"For the record, I did say 'no' like…a billion times…"

The other club members turned to leave, Sena with an angry huff, but then Cadmus said, "Wait…I'll come."

"You'll come?" Sena repeated, now confused, "Why change your mind?"

He stood up, "Cause…I don't know…let's just go before I change my mind, alright?" He asked, then he added, "I don't want Yukimura to be sad…"

Yukimura's face lit up, she ran forward and gave Cadmus a squeeze, "Thank you, Cadmus!"

Cadmus made a choking sound, "Alright, alright, get off me!" The hugging in this club was getting ridiculous. Even his own mother hugging him was a bit much for him.

He envied Kobato and Maria, still attending middle school, this event didn't pertain to them at all. It was just Cadmus, Kodaka, Rika, Sena, and Yukimura.

And Yozora. Wait, what?

"Yozora?" Cadmus asked, "Since when did you want to come with us? I thought you were staying in the club room…"

She rolled her eyes, "I finished the book, alright? There would be nothing to do back at the room…so I thought I'd just come with…or…whatever…it's not I actually _care_. I just have nothing better to do."

He rolled his eyes right back. Then his eyes widened once they reached the gymnasium. A lot more people were hyped about giving blood than Cadmus would ever expect. "You gonna be okay?" He leaned slightly towards Yozora.

"Yeah…why wouldn't I be?"

"Because it's crowded."

She froze, her eyes widening slightly, "Oh…well, I'll be fine. We won't be here that long." She said.

Cadmus wasn't so sure about that. What made things worse was the sheer amount of people giving blood vastly outnumbered the Student Council staff, meaning that people who didn't sign up or people who showed up last minute, like Cadmus, would have to wait a while.

Which wouldn't be a big deal if it were anyone else.

So Cadmus was left sitting in the back, where a dozen or so chairs were set up for those either waiting or for those who just gave blood and were resting. On either side of Cadmus were Yozora and Rika, for different reasons.

"Oh god…I think it's hitting me now…" Yozora said as she more or less slumped in her chair, "Why did I come here?" She coughed.

"Beats the hell outta me, you could've just stayed in the damn room." Cadmus said.

"Rika…Rika also can't handle large amounts of people…" Rika said, looking just as worn out. She smiled as Yozora put a hand over her mouth, "Are you going to throw up Yozora?" She asked, "Do it…do it…that would turn Rika on very much…"

"Okay, can we not do this right now?" Cadmus snapped.

Rika pouted, "Why so uppity, Cadmus?"

"…no reason…"

"Do you not like crowds either?"

"He's afraid of giving blood." Yozora said.

Cadmus swallowed hard, his cheeks a bright pink now. "Afraid of giving blood?" Rika asked.

He got extremely quiet, "I don't like needles…" His cheeks were red now.

"Aw…who would ever think that Cadmus would have such a cute side to him like this!" Rika laughed.

"It's not cute."

"Everyone's afraid of something. It's no big deal." Yozora shrugged.

Cadmus blinked a few times in surprise. Yozora sort of _defended_ him. Too bad he didn't have a camera, because that probably wasn't going to happen again.

"Ugh…here comes one of those stupid Student Council members…" Yozora growled.

"Right…so…" A girl approached them, "Mister Vanderbilt?"

Cadmus rose from his seat, "Later."

"Try not to have a heart-attack!" Rika waved with a smile.

Cadmus scowled at her remark. He already felt terrible, never feeling more nauseous in his entire life. By the time he got to his chair, he was quaking, feeling as though he was going to vomit.

"I see you're not in the school uniform…that's why it took me so long to find you." The girl from the Student Council looked him up and down.

He frowned, "So what? School's over…"

"I mean…technically, you're still on school grounds…but…whatever, I'll pretend I didn't see anything today. What I'm getting at is that you need to take those jackets off in order for the nurse to prick you."

"Right." He said, peeling his coats off and scoffing at her choice of language. _Prick_ , like it was that easy. More like _stab_. _Drain_ of everything. _Skewer_. These words made more sense to Cadmus in this context. All that was left was a thin black shirt.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." The girl grabbed his arms, "Don't…don't need to take that off too…now…"

Cadmus looked confused, "Don't they get your shoulder?"

"No, that's for vaccinations." She smiled and pointed to the inside of her elbow, "They get here for blood."

"Right…I knew that…" He blushed. "Can we get on with this?" He rolled his sleeve up.

"You need to stop shivering first."

"Oh…right…" Cadmus said, using one arm to more or less anchor himself to a chair.

"Alright, I guess that's as good as we're gonna get." The girl sighed, "I'll get a nurse."

In a few minutes, he heard a 'greetings Mister Vanderbilt' from the nurse as the girl from the Student Council returned with her.

"Alright." Cadmus said, "Do your worst."

The nurse smiled, "A bit nervous, are we? That's fine, we get plenty of first timers." She put a pair of sterile gloves on, setting up the equipment around the chair. She then held Cadmus's arm, smoothing her fingertips over his inner arm.

Cadmus tensed up even more, he was sure this was part of the procedure or whatever, but he had a personal space bubble about a mile in diameter, so this already annoyed him. He really didn't want to pass up, or throw up, but he felt as if he was going to do both of those things at once.

"Clench your hand into a fist for me, will you, dear?"

"Right…" Cadmus said, given how tense he was, this was the easy part. He clenched his hand into a fist.

"So, you're a second year student…is that right?" The nurse asked, starting to rub his arm down with alcohol.

"Uh…yeah…"

"Studies going okay?"

"Uh…well…better…than before…" He said, peering out in the distance to see if he could spot Yozora anywhere.

"Lots of friends?"

He paused. To think, if she asked this question like series of weeks ago, the answer would probably be no. Could, could he say yes? Was that a fair assumption? "You know what…yeah…I got a ton of friends—"

He felt a searing prick in his arm. Damn. She got him distracted with small talk. Oldest trick in the book for nurses. The pinch was tiny but nevertheless it gave Cadmus another horrid round of chills, as he felt the cold thin syringe dig inside of him. He tried to relax his breathing and not completely freak out.

"Alright, all done." She said once they drained enough blood, "Bruising in the area is coming after the shot goes through."

"Gee…I wonder why…"

"It's nothing to worry about." The nurse smiled, "Go get your juice and cookie."

He gave a slight nod. At least there was one good thing out of all this.

* * *

"Damn it, I knew I forgot something…" Cadmus muttered, heading to the club room. The sun had already set, and the sky was alight with stars. He was pretty sure he left his bag in here, not that it had much, but he didn't want to leave it here.

A familiar figure was sitting at the head of the table as he entered. Cadmus's eyes widened, "What the hell are you doing here?"

Yozora looked up from her book. It must have been a different one because she claimed she finished the other one. "I'm reading. What are _you_ doing here?"

"I forgot something…" He said, "Jeez…it's really late. Aren't your parents worried about you?"

She avoided eye contact, "I just…want to stay here for as long as I can…"

There was a silence. Something was really wrong with Yozora's parents. Too bad Cadmus didn't know how to bring the subject up without sounding nosy or like a big jerk.

She looked up at him, "So you gave blood?"

He nodded, "It…wasn't terrible…I just feel tired now…"

"Good." She smiled, "I'm glad you went through with it."

"Uh…" He went pink, immediately looking to the side. She was being _way_ too nice to him today. It's like she wasn't even the same Yozora. She must have been switched with one of the ones at the factory.

He went near the television, getting on his knees and digging around through Sena's games.

"Ew…" Yozora said, "Don't touch Meat's pornos…they'll infect you!"

"Ah-ha…" He said, "I knew she had this game…"

"What game?"

"Battle Royale: Unlimited Warriors." Cadmus held the game up, "I saw her flipping through it once. It's like the best fighting game out there."

She rolled her eyes, "I knew that…what are you going to do with it?"

"I wanted to give it a try." He said, "Uh…if you want to play with me…" He started. For whatever reason, Yozora didn't want to go home right away, so maybe they could play together. Or at least he hoped. The game was painfully boring if you were just playing by yourself.

"Sure." Yozora put her book down, "Can't wait to kick your ass." She said as she grabbed a controller.

"Pfft, you're full of it." Cadmus said as he turned the game on.

They got to the character selection screen rather quickly. Cadmus immediately chose the biggest, darkest, most frightening looking character.

"The executioner?" Yozora raised a brow.

"Yeah, why not? Look at the size of his axe."

"He's way too slow and clumsy. You won't even _hit_ me with him."

"Pfft…we'll see about that." He said, watching as she picked a character who resembled a witch, "Mage class, huh?"

She gave a nod.

"I could never really get her move set. It's so…technical…and weird…"

"I'll give you a lesson, that is if I don't kill you sooner."

"Alright, that's it, let's get this started!"

Truth was, Cadmus played as the executioner before. He knew most of his basic attacks, and even some of his advanced ones. This didn't stop Yozora from knocking him out in one attack, however.

"Hey!" Cadmus snapped, while Yozora was too busy laughing.

"I told you." She said, "Too slow."

"Rematch." He barked.

Yozora beat him even quicker the second time, "Gee Scruffy…at least that one took thirty seconds…you're improving…"

"Rematch."

The third battle she toyed with him a little bit, perhaps giving him a sense of hope before she ultimately crushed him.

"Rematch."

"Do you want to switch characters or something?"

"You know what, yeah. I bet the witch is like…super overpowered or something…"

"Uh-huh…" She muttered.

With Yozora as the executioner and Cadmus as the mage, Cadmus thought for sure that he was going to win. However, the mage's attacks were confusing and roundabout. To the point where he was so concentrated on attacking, that he was running straight into the wall. This gave Yozora's character plenty of time to lumber over and decapitate him.

"Damn it…" Cadmus growled.

Yozora laughed, "Maybe next time, Scruffy." She said.

"Remind me to practice that game nonstop." Cadmus said, turning the game off as he stood up.

Yozora fell into a coughing fit as she rose with him, causing Cadmus to look at her with concern, "Damn it…" He said, "We should have left earlier…we got school tomorrow."

"I'll be fine." She said, "I just need to get home."

"Me too." He said, leaving the club room with her, "So how far do you live away from the school?"

"Not very far." Yozora said, "You?"

"Eh, could be worse."

They walked in silence for a few minutes, Cadmus felt the chilled night air breeze by him, relaxing him slightly. Part of him still couldn't believe that he gave blood. He thought with his fear of needles, that such a sensation was impossible. Well, if he could do that, than he was going to do this. "Hey, I've been thinking…"

"Oh boy, Scruffy's been thinking…" Yozora said, "World's gonna end…"

He rolled his eyes, "I mean, we're all part of a club right…shouldn't I have everyone's numbers?" He asked, "I mean, especially the President's."

She paused for a moment, "Hmm, I haven't really thought about that." She said, "You are a new member, I guess it does make sense."

He smiled. He definitely wasn't using this as a cover up to get her number. Nope. Not at all. "Then why don't we swap now?" He got his phone out.

She nodded and pulled out her phone, her eyes widening once she saw Cadmus's, "You gotta be freaking kidding me…"

"What?"

"We have the exact same phone." She grabbed his phone away from him, "Same model…same color…" She froze, looking at the two phones as if they were bound to the weight of her destiny or something.

"And?" He raised a brow.

Her hands trembled, "Kodaka's phone…is…is yellow…" She said, practically mumbling at this point so Cadmus could only hear little snippets, "And…then…we exchanged numbers…Meat didn't have a cell phone…which was great…but then she bought one… _exactly_ like Kodaka's…" She quivered, "That…one could say that's where it all started…"

"Right…touchy subject…" Cadmus said, gently reaching out and taking his phone back, "Sorry…"

"You trying to tell me something buying a phone exactly like mine?" She snapped.

His cheeks went bright red, "No." He said, luckily he was able to pull off one hell of a recovery poker face, "Yozora, I bought this phone _well before_ I met you. And everything I wear and own is black, in case you didn't notice…" He said. His phone being exactly like hers was genuinely a coincidence. His feelings for her, on the other hand…

"Right." She said, "Guess I'm just paranoid."

Cadmus unlocked his phone, "Send me them digits."

"Okay, word of advice, never ask it like that again."

"I was just joking…"

"Whatever you say, Scruffy…" She said.

They quickly exchanged their numbers, "Cool." He said, "I'll get the rest of the club's numbers tomorrow." He said, Yozora gave a small nod and they kept walking, eventually he asked. "How much longer 'till we get to your house?"

"It's up ahead." Yozora nodded. She then coughed for a long while.

"Jeez…" He said, "Sounds like you're getting worse…"

"I know." She said, "I thought it would just go away…god, this is so annoying…"

"I feel kinda out of it too…with the blood they took." He said. Maybe that was why Yozora accepted his offer to switch numbers and why she was acting a _hair_ nicer than usual. She was sick, delirious perhaps. She didn't know what was what. He was sure that after a while, she would go back to her old self and hurl insults at Cadmus every now and then.

"Alright, here it is." She nodded to her house, pausing before she stepped towards the front door, "How much further away do you live?"

"Not very far, I'll manage."

"Right." She said, "Goodnight Scruffy. See you tomorrow."

"Later." He gave a small wave, taking a glimpse at the night sky as a breeze ruffled his outer trench coat yet again.

* * *

 **A/N:** Wow, I can't believe I ended a chapter without having Cadmus and Yozora kill each other. Well, one is sick, and the other is loopy from the blood drive, so I guess there's that. Also, that video game they were playing I completely made up on the spot, so if it was basic, that's because it was not a real game. I also would like to thank dragongodslayer7 for leaving a review. I'm very glad that people are actually enjoying this, and I'll do what I can to get chapter eight up soon! Until next time!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** Hello, and here is chapter eight! I'm glad I was able to get this one out so quickly. I'm not exactly too sure when I'll get nine up, but it's in the works, at least. Enjoy the read!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

He decompressed quite a bit as he put that last coat on. For some reason he always felt so much better out of the tacky school uniform. He had no idea why, it must have been some kind of facet of nature or something. It also signaled the end to a school day and the fact that he was going to hang out at the Neighbor's Club. Why, if anyone looked at him for a moment, his usual scowl seemed quite a bit less so than usual, and there might even have been a spring to his step.

He actually smiled as he swung the door open to the clubroom, "What's up, everybody?" He said, then he took a closer look and saw that there was one member missing from their usual seat. His smile faded, "Hey, what gives?" He asked, "Where the hell is Yozora?"

Everyone looked at him like he had three heads, or at the very least was confused at how shocked he was by her disappearance, "She wasn't in school today." Kodaka said.

"She was really sick, remember?" Yukimura asked quietly, right next to him near the door, "She probably took a day off."

"Oh…right…" Cadmus said, slowly heading for his usual seat, "That makes sense." He said, though it still felt weird with the chair to his right empty.

"Who cares?" Sena asked, playing her game a few feet away, "The less we have to deal with that skank, the better, I say."

Cadmus wasn't exactly surprised that she said that, nor was he surprised by Kodaka reprimanding her with a 'that's not nice.'

"Hey." Sena paused her game and looked directly at Cadmus, "Were you fiddling with one of my games?"

Cadmus pointed to himself, "It…might have been possible…" He said, when her gaze hardened, he said, "Come on, I just wanted to try that fighting game…really…it's not like I broke anything…"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." She said, "Better you than Yozora I guess, she's not allowed to play any of my games after she dissed them as pornos…ugh…"

Cadmus whistled innocently, the fact that he played _with_ Yozora would merely be kept a secret, then.

Rika leaned over from the chair to Cadmus's left, "Hi Cadmus…" She whispered in his ear.

Cadmus instinctively scooted his chair away a bit, "Hi Rika." He said.

Kodaka looked up from his homework once a silence entered the room, "So…what's the next thing we should do together as a club, with the weekend coming up and everything?"

"Beats me." Cadmus said, "We went camping last weekend…but I guess that had mixed results, depending on who you asked."

"Should we just go to the beach again?" Sena asked, "Daddy has that house."

"Your dad has a beach house?"

She smiled, "He can buy anything he and I want, so that's why it's important to stay on my good side."

Cadmus muttered something under his breath.

"Sounds like an okay idea." Kodaka said, "Any objections?"

Yukimura gave a smile and a nod, indicating that she was for the idea, while Rika ambushed Cadmus with a hug, "Rika would love to go and see what Cadmus looks like in a swim suit!"

Cadmus made a choking sound as the air was suddenly knocked out of him, "Okay…" He coughed, "Having second thoughts about the beach now!"

"He and Kodaka could have a sexy beachside encounter, it would be amazing!" She hyped, "They'd take their swimming trunks off and then—"

Cadmus slapped a hand over Rika's mouth before she could finish that sentence. But this didn't prove to be very wise, as he felt her lick his hand. Cadmus felt several dozen chills as he skittered back away from her like a crab, "This is harassment!" He pointed.

"Good." Sena smiled, turning her game off, "I'm glad that was settled, then." She got up and headed for the table. Kobato of course, immediately bolted the second Sena got anywhere near her, and Sena took her seat. She leaned over to Kodaka and kissed his cheek.

Kodaka's cheeks turned bright red, "Sena…" He said, turning to face her, of course, the second he did, she kissed is lips. They shared the position for quite a few seconds.

Most of the club looked mildly surprised, (aside from Rika, who clasped her hands together in either romantic joy or dirty fondness).

Sena eventually backed away from the kiss, even her cheeks were a little pink, "What…? We're dating, aren't we? I just…I feel like Yozora would flip her lid if she saw us do anything…so…while she was sick, I wanted to try that…"

Kodaka gave a rigid nod, his cheeks still burning red, "Right…okay, that makes sense."

Cadmus slowly returned to his seat. Were they that afraid of what Yozora thought about their relationship? Was she really _that_ jealous? He had to admit, it was something he scarcely thought of before. He assumed she was trying to move on with herself by now, but maybe she's still stuck in the past.

It pressured him, and he wasn't even part of the offending party here. Maybe he was worried for a different reason. Maybe Yozora wasn't the only jealous person here. Maybe Cadmus was getting jealous of Kodaka, who Yozora still clearly carried a torch for. This must have been some pretty heavy stuff if everyone in the club was trying to keep the relationship as nonchalant as possible so Yozora wouldn't explode, but, is that really a suitable way for them to live and function as a club?

Kobato relocated to the couch in the corner of the room, unfortunately she awoke Maria in the process. "Hey, watch where you're going, poopy vampire!" Maria sat up.

"That monster took my seat, idiot!" Kobato snapped.

"Shut up, poopy!"

"Minion of god!"

"Queen of the hookers!"

"Hooker overlord!"

Cadmus rolled his eyes, their incessant arguing was going to give him a headache at this point. Rika grabbing his wrist distracted him from all the noise.

"Rika thinks we should follow their example…" She whispered, as Sena and Kodaka kissed again.

Cadmus tore his wrist away, "Absolutely not."

Sena smiled and folded her hands, evidently pleased with herself, it seemed. "This is awesome, I bought a new swimsuit and couldn't wait to try it out." She smiled at Kodaka, "Now I have the chance to show it off, I hope you're ready to be completely floored."

Kodaka went right back to the same red shade he was before, the kiss on the cheek was enough to get him flustered, "Uh-huh…I'll…I'll do my best."

"Don't be seduced by the monster, big brother!" Kobato shouted, to no avail.

"That reminds Rika!" Rika clenched her fists in excitement, "She needs to get a new swimsuit too, especially for a certain someone who's first time it is out on the beach with the Neighbor's Club." She smiled.

Cadmus sighed, "Someone please kill me…" He muttered to himself.

"Or…" Rika's smile grew as she stood up, walking over to Yukimura and putting her hands on her shoulders, "Would you prefer Yukimura in a swimsuit?"

Yukimura blushed, she looked from Rika to Cadmus, in which case the latter didn't even dignify that with a response. "Don't…don't push him…besides…neither of us are going to look at good as Sena in a swimsuit…"

"But she's dating Kodaka silly, unless…" Rika crossed her arms, "Aw…Cadmus wants a threesome, do it Cadmus, do it!"

"Hey, he's mine! No threesomes!" Sena objected.

"Come on guys, leave him alone." Kodaka said.

Everyone looked at Cadmus, who was lost in thought about something else. It must have been important, considering he hadn't directly responded to anyone in a minute or two.

He eventually said, "Should we really do this beach trip without Yozora? Without even running it by her? She is the club President after all, I feel like we should keep her in the loop, right?"

There was a pause, the others stared at Cadmus for a while, as if he just answered an unspoken question in all of their minds'.

Sena rolled her eyes, "She'll feel better by then, jeez…it's not like I _want_ to ditch her. We'll see if she's back in school in a few days, then judge it from there."

"Right…" He said, hoping deep down that Yozora would get better soon. Then he mentally chastised himself. _I do not like Yozora. I do not like Yozora. I do not like Yozora._

* * *

He was going to have to be careful at the next club meeting, he thought as he walked home, only the street lamps able to illuminate his path under the night sky. It wouldn't be long before all the club members would conclude that he had feelings for Yozora.

"But I don't have feelings for Yozora…I don't." He told himself quietly, "It's impossible." He said, "Jeez…now I'm freaking talking to myself…"

He took a deep breath. Well, either that, or Rika was going to throw him at all the other women in the club. He _did_ suppose that Kodaka warned him something like this would happen. He just didn't think it was going to be a daily thing, was it going to be worse on the beach? In that case maybe it would be wiser of him to skip the beach altogether. It was unlikely Yozora was going to be there anyway, so it was double the reason he shouldn't go.

Not that he _liked_ Yozora or anything. She was just the only person he had any sort of wavelength with. Nothing romance-wise. Never romance-wise.

Cadmus's thoughts were interrupted by his phone vibrating in his jacket. By now he heard most of the Neighbor's Club alert tones, and none were quite like his, which was, you guessed it, blaring metal music.

He took his phone out and glanced at the screen, seeing the sender's name was Yozora made his eyes widen, and his heart clench up. He read the text that followed:

' _Get over here as soon as possible. I'm dying.'_

He raised a brow, feeling many conflicted feelings at once. She wasn't _actually_ dying, he assumed, or he hoped, rather. Would it be okay for him to just go inside her house? Wouldn't her parents get mad?

He shook it off, decided to go the route he went the other night to quickly get to her house. He got slightly more and more nervous as he approached the front door. He knocked on it timidly, waiting for either parent to answer it, when no one did. He knocked again.

After five minutes of knocking, he was about ready to tear someone's head off, was this a prank?

Evidently, his phone provided an answer, he picked it up and it vibrated and played its fanfare again.

' _Just come in. No one's here.'_

"What the hell?" Cadmus wondered, "Her parents just left her sick and alone here…" He barged in, "That's freaking irresponsible…"

Yozora's house was small, and neat. Judging by the girl herself, he wasn't too surprised. Yozora seemed liked the type of person to have her organizational stuff together. The problem was, he still couldn't find her. He thought he'd see her laying on the nearest couch, but she wasn't anywhere in front of him.

He sighed, moseying around her house. There were a few family photos throughout the house that he would peer at occasionally. He snarled and reached for his phone, maybe if he called Yozora this pointless searching would end.

He dropped his phone, it made a big clatter as it hit. Once he focused in on the photos, he noticed something rather disturbing.

In terms of the family photos, at least, they looked fairly typical at first. Yozora was in the center, as the child usually was, with her mother to the left of her. Her mother had many of Yozora's features, the eyes and the hair, almost looking like an older Yozora herself. Though there were difference. Her attitude and the way she carried herself for one. She looked ten times more depressed than Yozora (which is a high bar to pass in itself) and her mood would only get worse in the pictures as Yozora got older.

The interesting thing was her father. Or lack of, he should say.

There was no father, in any of the photos. This wouldn't be that disturbing, if it wasn't so obvious that there _was_ a third person in each photograph. Every picture had a huge serrated rip mark at the end of it, where her father would be. Torn out of the picture without any sort of grace or sanity for that matter. Cadmus swallowed hard, as more questions were being answered as do why Yozora did anything in her power to escape being inside her own house.

His phone vibrated from the ground, ripping out that metal song again. Cadmus bent down slowly and picked it up, it was the umpteenth text from Yozora.

' _Upstairs.'_

He made an unamused face as he read the text. This was starting to turn into a damn scavenger hunt. He looked for the first staircase he could find and headed up them. Finding Yozora's room took a few minutes, but he assumed it was the one with the figure lying in bed.

"Hmm…nice room…" He mused quietly as he walked in.

"Scruffy…" She coughed from her pillow, her voice was hoarse and scratchy, Cadmus could barely hear it. In fact, it made his _own_ raspy voice sound absolutely beautiful.

"Damn…" He said, "You look horrible."

"I got a fever…" She said, trying to sit up, "That's why I skipped, I feel worse and worse…"

His cheeks went faintly pink seeing how vulnerable she looked in her black nightgown. Her once bright amethyst eyes were reddened and tired. And her breathing looked stressed, "Scruffy…I…I need water…please…my throat is killing me…"

"Right." He nodded, "Where the hell's your mom? She shouldn't leave you here like this." He said. He almost added 'and dad' but he figured that wouldn't be a wise thing to say given what he saw on the pictures. He also figured now wouldn't be a good time to ask 'Hey, Yozora…your dad's missing from all the pictures, what's that about?' That would come later. When she was feeling better.

"She's…out…" Yozora said, in a tone that suggested she didn't really _care_ where her mother was right now.

"Right, I'll get the water now." He said, raising his hands up, "Just…lay down, save your strength."

She collapsed back into a laying position as Cadmus began to leave the room, "You want ice?" He asked.

She gave only a pathetic moan as a response.

"I'm getting ice." He said, heading back down the stairs.

Part of him felt like an idiot for not asking whether she wanted tap water or bottled water. Did they even have bottled water? He was going to have to pick one, he didn't want to go back up there empty handed, she looked completely wiped out.

Luckily he soon found out that their refrigerator could just dispense water, so he went with that option. He found a cup and filled it with a couple ice cubes first, then some water. He then quickly, yet carefully, went back upstairs.

"Here." He said, "You might have to sit up drinking it, do you want help?"

She slowly shot up, brushing hair out of her face, "I got it." She took the cup from him, sipping from it.

His eyes widened as he watched her drink, "Be careful not to go so fast." He said.

She must have ignored him, because the glass was half empty when she set it down on a nearby nightstand. She took a sigh of relief, her voice sounding at least partially better, "Thanks, Scruffy."

"Did you want me to make you something? Like…soup?"

She shook her head, "I doubt I could hold it down." She said, looking him in the eye, "You should go home. Whatever this is, you don't want to catch it."

"Oh…no…not missing school…I love school…ah…"

She rolled her eyes, "Can you even _afford_ to miss any more days?"

He shrugged, "You should've seen Sena today at the club. Planned an event as if she had your rank or something. Apparently we're going to her dad's beach house."

"Whatever…" She said, "I don't want to go to Meat's dumb old house anyway…"

"You're skipping it?"

"I am _not_ going to feel better anytime soon. Today proves that."

"Damn…it's going to be so boring then…" He said, then he blushed, "I mean…cause…cause Sena's just so _boring_ …and all…"

"Damn right she is."

He smiled, debating on whether he should leave now or not, "Hey…uh…Yozora…?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm uh…sorry…again…for saying that you were antisocial…completely out of line on my part…stupid thing to say…my bad…"

Her cheeks were pink, but it could've easily been because of how sick and hot she was, she twirled a piece of her hair, "You don't have to keep apologizing about it, alright? That just makes it awkward."

He rolled his eyes, "Tch. Whatever." He said, facing the doorway, "I guess I should go now, huh? You're not coming to the beach?" He clarified.

"No."

"Right, okay." He said, "If…uh…if you need help like that again or something, just text me again, okay?"

"It shouldn't happen again."

"Alright." He said, "Get better."

"Yeah, yeah…"

He reached the bottom of the stairs quickly, and then left her house. He didn't even _bother_ contemplating what time it was at night by now. He seemed to have a habit of doing that, whenever he was out doing something with Yozora or the club, he never kept track of time. He guessed it had to do with the adage about time flying when a person was having fun, but he felt it was more than that.

Yes, judging by how warm his chest felt whenever he was around her, it was probably more than just fun. He hadn't felt a burning feeling like this ever in his life.

His phone suddenly went off, and he picked it up, surprised to see another text from Yozora.

' _Thanks again, Scruff.'_

He gave a small smile, not able to explain why a text as simple as that made him so gleeful.

* * *

 **A/N:** There you have it, another chapter down. I wonder how Cadmus is going to live through the next one given that Yozora probably won't make an appearance in it…I'm sure he'll live. Thanks for reading! Until next time!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Hello everyone, I have finally returned from the dead! (At least in terms of this fic). The Neighbor's Club, sans Yozora, go on their beach-time fun, but, as with every chapter in this story, not everything is as it seems.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

The morning light's arrival was hardly welcome to Cadmus's weary eyes as they slowly opened. One would think that on a school day, he would be stressed to face what lied ahead of him. But on this day off, it seemed ten times worse. Today was the day that they were heading for the beach, to Sena's father's beach house (possibly one of many beach houses, what the hell did he know?) It was supposed to be something to look forward to, but, Cadmus had been struggling with that.

He sat up in bed, rubbing at his eyes and taking a deep sigh. It seemed doing that much was exhausting. Yozora would be going with them to this getaway, and for a reason he still couldn't explain to the cosmos, it made him nervous.

Sure, her being there might not _necessarily_ make the trip any better. When she was in a bad mood, (which was a lot) she would just hurl insults at him and act like a complete downer. They could have been in a land made of gold and candy and Yozora would still be testy and sulking. But he still believed that overall, her company would be appreciated. For one thing, he knew her better than any member of the Neighbor's Club, and part of him knew that experiences like this would make him get to know the rest of the club, but it didn't make the task seem any less daunting.

Then there was his monster-sized crush on her that left a burning feeling in his chest. There was that too.

He growled and repeated to himself, "I do not like Yozora…" He said, part of him at this point wondering why he was even denying it, "I do not like Yozora…I do not like Yozora…"

His bedroom door slowly creaked open, "Cadmus…darling?" His mother asked, "Who are you talking to?"

Cadmus swallowed hard, slightly embarrassed, "Uh…hey…mom…" He said as the latter entered the room. He got out of bed, starting to dig around in his dressers, "So…do I have any swimsuits around?"

"Swimsuits?" She asked, her lips gradually curving into a smile, "Where are you headed this weekend?"

"Uh…the club and I are headed to the beach for the weekend…so I need a swimsuit…probably should have looked earlier…I know…"

Her smile grew, "I should have just the thing for you, I'll be right back." She left, returning with a set of black swim trunks, "These should do nicely, they were hidden downstairs."

Cadmus smiled, "Thanks, they're perfect." He said, taking a deep sigh, "I guess I should head to where the others are meeting up."

Her smile faded, "What's the matter?" She asked, "For someone heading out with all their friends, you don't look so happy."

He paused at the doorway, "Well…it's just…someone's too sick to show up…and I feel bad…"

"Aw…are they okay? Do they know they're being left behind?"

He nodded, "They don't really care though…which is good, I guess…but still…I wish they could come. I stopped by their house the other day…to update them on club business."

"That's sweet of you. I'm sure they really appreciated it, deep down, even if they didn't say anything."

He almost laughed at the absurdity of that statement. _Good one, mom, but you don't know Yozora like I do._ "I should get going."

"Alright Cadmus, have fun."

"Right."

* * *

The heat was unbearable given how fierce the sun decided to be on this day, yet the prospect of having a beach all to the seven of them sounded more than a little promising.

"So this place is all to ourselves?" Cadmus asked, "Gotta say, that sounds pretty sweet."

"Of course, daddy owns it, so we'll be uninterrupted." Sena said.

"Nice, so what should we do first?" He asked as they arrived at the shore.

"We should probably put sunblock on before we do anything else." Kodaka said.

Cadmus looked from himself to all the others, the girls were all in bikinis while Kodaka was in a pair of swim trunks, as for himself, he had the black pair of trunks his mother gave him. He looked at his arm. Given how ridiculously pale he was, he would probably roast instantly, "Right." Cadmus said, "Good call."

"Ooh…Cadmus…" He heard Rika's voice as she inched closer to his ear, whispering, "You're so muscular."

Cadmus skittered to the side, "Whatever you're thinking right now, probably isn't helping." He said, looking around for the container of sunscreen, as the others began to set up a blanket, a beach chair, and an umbrella.

"Do you need Rika's help to get your back?"

He sighed, "Fine, whatever…"

"Be careful who you assign that job." Sena warned, "Ugh…at least stupid Yozora isn't here…she won't be able to sunscreen my back again."

Cadmus sat down on the blanket while Rika got his back, "I'm guessing that ended with the usual shenanigans…"

"No…it was terrible…way worse…"

"I have to admit, it was pretty creepy, what she did." Kodaka added quietly.

Cadmus held his hands up, "I don't want to know."

He watched ahead at the crashing waves for a while as Rika finished up. Part of him felt strange. He had never been this, well, naked to the others. Or at the very least he didn't show this much skin. He was used to wearing two to three layers of jackets over his body. Without his leather shield, he felt rather revealed to the world. Maybe it was a stupid thing to worry about.

After another few minutes of applying sunscreen, they were more or less ready to take on the beach, "So what should we do?" Kodaka asked.

Cadmus crossed his arms, trying his best to ignore Kobato and Maria's petty argument about which of them was the better swimmer, "Beats me."

"We could do volleyball. There's a net right over there." Sena pointed, "Which of you brought the ball?"

"That would be me." Yukimura smiled, holding up a ball.

"Awesome." Cadmus gave a slasher smile, "Let's do this, I can't wait to crush the poor losers who face off against me."

"Oh, you are so on." Sena cracked a smile, "They don't call me the talented athletic goddess for nothing."

"I'll make you eat those words." He said, as the group headed to the simple volleyball field.

"Rika will do you all the honor of keeping score." Rika said.

Cadmus nodded, given Rika's tendency for knowledge of athleticism, it didn't surprise him.

"Alright, so how should we make teams, should we do captains? I nominate myself as captain." Sena declared proudly.

"Fine, then I'll be the other captain." Cadmus said, running up to her side.

"Guys, come on, what is this, gym glass?" Kodaka asked.

"I choose Kodaka first." Sena pointed

"Aw…crap…I was gonna pick Kodaka…" Cadmus said, looking at the three remaining choices, "Yukimura." He grunted, to which Yukimura gave a small smile, and stood at his side.

"Kobato!" Sena grinned, maybe sounding a little _too_ excited about her choice.

Kobato nervously obliged. Perhaps the _only_ reason she felt comfortable joining Sena's team was the fact that her brother was also on said team.

"Alright, Maria, let's go." Cadmus said, as the two teams of three faced one another.

"So how far should we go?" Rika asked, "First to fifteen wins?"

Kodaka shook his head, "If we do until fifteen, we'll all get heat stroke. Let's try first to five."

Cadmus nodded, "Five sounds reasonable."

"Alright, who should serve first?" Sena asked.

He nodded towards her, "Go ahead."

Sena took a few steps back, tossing the ball in the air, "Zero serving zero!" She smacked the ball towards the other side.

Cadmus narrowed his eyes and smiled, easily answering her serve and sending the ball back over to their side. Kodaka responded quickly to Cadmus's move and hit back, while Cadmus darted towards the ball for retaliation.

"I got it, Cadmus!" He heard Maria scream, although the only thing that happened was the two of them bumping into each other and falling on the ground. The ball meanwhile, rolled across the ground.

"Ha!" Sena cheered, "One point for us!"

Cadmus snarled and looked from Maria to Yukimura, "From now on, if you know you can hit the ball, say as much. It'll prevent that from happening again." Said teammates gave a small nod.

"Ready to give up?" Sena taunted.

"Pfft, you got one lucky score in, don't count on it happening again."

"Try to keep up then, alright?"

"Save it, water balloons."

"Ugh, rude." She pouted. "Whatever." She retrieved the ball, "One serving zero." She hit the ball their way.

Cadmus darted around his side of the field like a madman. Sena may have been athletic, but Cadmus was able to keep up with her. After a large amount of passing between all the players, Cadmus finally found a weak spot and spiked the ball towards it, earning the first point.

"Ha!" Cadmus pointed, "Eat it!"

"Ugh, just serve the ball and get on with it."

Cadmus snickered, picking up the ball, "One serving one!" He sent the ball flying over to the other side of the field.

The match was fairly even, every time Sena's team garnered a point, Cadmus's team was close behind, or vice versa. In little time, they were tied at three to three.

Cadmus was beginning to feel beads of sweat all over him. Part of him was thankful that Kodaka limited this to five points, because he was panting like crazy. Maybe he should just give up the ghost and let Sena win. She didn't look nearly as tired as he did.

Of course, having Sena brag at the Neighbor's Club for possible weeks on end of how she owned him at volleyball was not something he ideally wanted.

"I'd stay awake, if I were you, Cadmus!" Sena spiked the ball over.

"Shit…" Cadmus watched it fly over his head, "Yukimura, Maria, one of you go get that! I'm too close to the front!"

The ball hit the sand, in an open spot in their formation. Maria, who should have easily been able to return the ball, was out of bounds.

"Hmm, so now it's four to three…" Rika said, still in the protection of the shade.

"Maria!" Cadmus snapped, "Damn it! What the hell are you doing all the way over there!"

"I don't wanna play anymore…this is boring…" Maria said.

Cadmus frowned and pointed at Sena, "That last point shouldn't count, I had a teammate drop from my ranks!"

"Jeez, will you get over yourself?" Sena asked, "If it makes you feel any better, we'll drop a member too."

"Well, you have to. We can't continue the game with two people versus three."

Kodaka walked over to Kobato and got to her level, "Why don't you sit the rest of the game out. Go relax and play in the water if you want."

Kobato nodded, how quickly she left pretty gave away the fact that she didn't want to play anymore either.

Cadmus faced ahead, getting in a receiving position as Sena was about to serve. His eyes darted over to Yukimura, "We just need to get two more points, alright?" He asked, "And we can't afford to lose another one. One more screw up and we lose."

Yukimura gave a tiny nod, "It's just a game."

Cadmus's eyes shrunk to the size of dots. It was a tiny, polite reminder, but it froze him up and made him rethink how he was approaching this. It was supposed to be day of fun and leisure. And here he was, acting as if this volleyball game seriously mattered. What was the big deal if Sena ended up winning? A few days of bragging? No big deal. He would happily choose that over mouthing off to all the members of the Neighbor's Club. Why did he have such a strong inherent rivalry with Sena in the first place?

He swallowed hard. Was Yozora rubbing off on him _that_ much?

He took a shaky sigh, closing his eyes and resolving that if Sena and Kodaka got the winning point, it would be just fine, if anything, it was probably an inevitability, and one that he would happily see through to the end.

"Alright, this should be easy." Sena said, giving Kodaka a quick peck on the cheek, "Let's do this."

Cadmus gave a small smile, who was he to stand in the way of this couple happily winning their last point?

* * *

Explanations sometimes just went straight over his head.

Especially when an urgent trip to the bathroom was involved.

Firstly, they lost the volleyball match. Cadmus and Yukimura did their best, but Sena and Kodaka won in the end. Once the sun started to set, they made their way back to Sena's beach house, and that's where things got fuzzy regarding his attention span and his bladder.

Apparently the original plan _was_ to stay at the beach house. But something came up and said beach house was inaccessible. So they were all staying the night at Sena's _regular_ house, or, so he remembered. Maybe they were at the beach house all along, and he just dreamt that up. All he knew was he really needed to find the bathroom.

Finding it was no easy task, given how huge Sena's house was. Sure, it was spacious, gorgeous, immaculate, and everything a rich girl like her could have ever asked for, but it turned a simple trip to the bathroom into a nightmare. He definitely should have asked either Sena or one of her family members.

Luckily he found one before anything happened. Unluckily once he left the bathroom, he had no idea where to go to get back with the others. The house was so big, he didn't even know where to begin looking.

 _Great, just freaking great, I knew I should have skipped out on this stupid trip. This has been nothing but a waste of time._ He thought to himself as he adjusted his trench coat. The only good thing out of this ordeal was that he was finally out of his swimsuit. It felt like the entire world was staring at him with that thing on.

The tenth room he tried wasn't the dining hall or any sort of gathering place either, but something caught his eye. Something that made him take a few steps in.

It was a bedroom, that was for sure. Was it Sena's? The bed was all pink and girly, so the answer was likely yes.

But what made him stroll in was what was on the ceiling. He looked up, his jaw dropping further and further. On the ceiling were hundreds, no, maybe _thousands_ of pictures of Yozora. They seemed to range from a rather long time period, perhaps the span of the entire club's duration.

He turned pink, "What the hell is all this?" He asked himself. Some of the pictures were at least months old, considering that Yozora still had long hair. She looked nice with long hair, and there were pink ribbons attached to the ends of her long black locks as well.

He couldn't tell what he found cuter. Yozora with long hair, or Yozora with short hair.

"Damn it, Cadmus!" He pinched his side, "Get a freaking hold of yourself! I do not like Yozora!"

Then he saw a picture that stuck out amongst the others. It explained the story of what happened to Sena on the beach in one fell swoop.

Again, it was a while ago, because Yozora still had long hair. Sena was lying on her stomach, and Yozora, in a zebra print full body swimsuit (which was surprisingly the least confusing thing on the damn photo) putting sunscreen on Sena's back. Only she was using her foot.

The only logic Cadmus could find for that was Yozora didn't want to touch Sena with her hands because she despised her so much. But, this was just, wrong on so many levels. She was basically stepping all over her. He understood that Sena and Yozora shared a rivalry, but, how often did it come to something like this?

Of course, the longer he stared at the picture, the redder his blush got. He often found it outrageously stupid when anime characters on television would get nosebleeds whenever they saw a pretty girl or girls doing degrading things. Then, why did he feel like he was about to have one?

It wasn't the sunscreen, no. That was gross and that entire ordeal looked uncalled for. But, he swallowed hard. Something about being stepped on by Yozora. That seemed okay to him. And okay is putting it lightly.

Alright, mental note. Cadmus would check into an insane asylum once this trip was over.

"Hey!" A high, shrill shriek burst him out of his reverie, "Just what the hell do you think you're doing in my room, you creepy stalker?!"

Cadmus whirled around, seeing an enraged Sena. He looked just as angry, however, as he pointed to the ceiling, "The hell do you have so many pictures of Yozora on the ceiling?!"

Sena's eyes shrunk, she slammed the door behind herself, confronting him and barely giving him an inch of space, "Listen to me, and listen good, those pictures are none of your business, and if you tell _anyone_ about them, I will ruin you."

"But…but why…why have them? I don't get it."

"She's my sworn enemy." Sena looked at the ceiling like he was, "Every time I look at her stupid face before I go to sleep, my vengeance grows stronger."

"So…it's to plot your revenge…?"

She nodded, then scowled, "Don't look so skeptical, lots of people do that!"

"Not…not so sure about that…this might be a crime…"

"Pfft, whatever, just get out!"

"I take it Yozora doesn't know about this."

"No and if you change that you'll be ruined."

He kept staring at the ceiling, it almost looked like he wanted to reach out and touch one of the photos, "She looks so happy in some of them."

Sena's scowl lessened in surprise, "Well…yeah…sure, I guess. Most of it was at the cost of my sanity…" She muttered.

"I wish I met her…back then. You know…? Like…happy Yozora…or…content Yozora…at least. Jeez…anything would do at this point."

"Okay…something's up…" She narrowed her eyes.

He either ignored her or didn't hear her, "What was she doing in that picture? Or that one?"

"Do you like Yozora?"

He turned deep red, shuddering a little, as the question he feared would arise had finally reared its ugly face. He faced her and looked her in the eye, giving a blunt nod, "Yeah."

She took a step or two back, blinking in surprise, "Wow…"

"What?" He asked insecurely.

"Nothing…it's just…we're all used to Kodaka dancing around his feelings and pretending he didn't notice." She said, "Haven't really met a guy who was so honest about himself."

"Kodaka's really like that?"

She nodded, "I'm surprised you didn't hear about it."

"If I learned anything from this club, I have to pester people for _days_ to get any information…"

"Hmm." She said, starting to pace, "So you have a crush on Yozora. Damn, that totally makes way too much sense, you're like her little minion!" She pointed at him.

He frowned, "I am _not_ her minion!"

"Although…" She thought to herself, "Maybe…this could work…"

"The hell does that supposed to mean?"

"Well, the reason she's so pissy all the time is because Kodaka and I are together. Maybe you can help her move on."

"Pfft, I _wish_ it was that easy. She still likes Kodaka." He said, "Stubborn as a damn mule…"

"I know, you two would fit so well together." She said, "Both depressing, both stubborn, you both looked pissed off all the time."

He half-wilted, "Alright, this is just insulting."

"I'm serious though, you should try something."

"Well you tell me then." He crossed his arms, "What made you fall in love with Kodaka?"

She turned pink, "Huh?"

"Did I stutter?"

"Ugh, she says _that_ all the time too—"

"Answer the damn question!"

"Well…I don't know. I thought he was just…some delinquent at first…but…I don't know…we spent a lot of time together. The _actual_ moment might have been when he defended me from a bunch of creepy guys. I don't know, I just…thought it was cute that he was worried about me. Before that, guys were just stalkers or servants to me…but, Kodaka really changed that."

"Great." He sighed, "So I just have to get Yozora and I in some dark, dank alleyway together. _Hope_ a bunch of thugs show up, and beat the shit out of them?"

"No, idiot…" She smacked her forehead, "You're missing the point. She just needs to see that you're not just some delinquent and you're someone who really cares about her."

"And how do I do that? I've been trying." He said, "What are my options? Dress up like Kodaka? Act like him too?"

"Ugh…no…look, I don't have all the answers. But I want to help you. Because if this keeps going on, it's going to take a toll on all our sanity." She said, "We'll have to wait and see when she's finally over her illness."

He nodded, "Right." He said, "I'll show myself out now…" He said, heading for the door.

"Not a word of what's in my room to another soul." She threatened.

"I know." He said, pausing in the doorway, "Sena?"

"Hmm?" She asked.

"Sorry about…being so…in your face…at the beach today…I…I didn't know I got so competitive…"

"Eh, it's fine. You may be Yozora's minion, but you're like, a tenth as threatening…"

He waved a fist at her, "I am _not_ her minion—" The door slammed in his face.

He sighed and started walking down the hallway. The alleyway brawl was most likely a bust. On many levels it was a stupid idea. For one thing, Yozora would be able to take on a team of thugs with relative ease. She was no damsel in distress, she could even be stronger than Cadmus, he had no idea. Maybe that's why he was so drawn to her. For all her faults, her will in terms of intellect and strength was iron-clad.

But what did that leave him with? He stared at the ground as he kept walking through the halls. His dark brown, almost black eyes looking hopeless. Would she pine after Kodaka for years, decades even? How much of a help would Sena be? Should he even trust her? Why would Yozora even like a scumbag like him when there was Kodaka? Kodaka was arguably better at him with everything. Sure, he wasn't a genius, but he wasn't an idiot like Cadmus. He was nicer, less blunt and rough around the edges. He could have been better looking too.

Not to mention the fact that they were childhood friends, which, also set Cadmus out of Yozora's league, because he had only known her for a gathering of weeks at best. Was he jealous of Kodaka? Yes, extremely. Because he went out and did something Cadmus thought impossible. Despite being in a committed relationship with Sena, it almost felt like he had Yozora too.

For whatever reason, if Sena and Kodaka broke up, what would happen next? What would the dynamics be to the group? Would Yozora and Kodaka hookup? Would she cheer up, be chipper, did her life really hinge on who Kodaka was involved with?

His mind was a dangerous storm of questions, that only seemed to get worse with each passing day. He could only hope that one day the storm would finally cease in his mind and everything would finally be at peace.

* * *

 **A/N:** Seems almost like a rollercoaster of thoughts going on here. Will they ever stop? (No, they'll probably get worse as the story goes on, if anything). Well, thank you all very much for reading, it's touching to have a small group of you following and favoriting the story, and I will do my best to have chapter ten up soon! Until next time!


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** At long last, chapter ten is now upon us! (I know it's only chapter ten, but I don't know, I think it's a big deal I made it this far) And hopefully I'll get the few up as soon as I possibly can.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

His smile was that of a wholesome one when he entered the clubroom, "Ha, look at that. Yozora's back."

Her violet eyes met his as she looked up, as usual sitting at the head of the table. Aside from the initial glance, she didn't respond to his statement. Unlike reading a book, like she always did, she was surrounded by at least five notebooks.

"Well, it's about time." Sena smiled, "If you got defeated by the likes of the sniffles, then you're not worth being my enemy."

"Save it for someone who actually cares, Meat." Yozora snarled.

Cadmus took his seat next to her, "Least you're feeling better."

She gave a sarcastic smile, "Yes, Scruffy…how wonderful it is that I, a poor student, am allowed to continue with my studies." She said in a higher, optimistic voice, before dropping to her natural octave, "Now I have almost a _week's_ worth of homework to catch up on."

"Jeez…sorry…" He said, "If you like…need any help with it, or something—"

"Pfft, what? Ask you? You're too dumb to even do your own homework, let alone help me with mine."

He looked at the table in front of him, "Sorry…"

Sena's eyes hardened, she looked at Yozora, "He was just offering help, you know. You don't have to be such a jerk about it."

"What do you want now, Meat?" Yozora asked.

"He was just—"

Cadmus cleared his throat, "It's fine." He said quietly. He and Sena exchanged a brief glance, Cadmus's eyes were firm. He knew what Sena was doing, but there was no point in her sacrificing her mental wellbeing for him like that. Especially when Yozora was in these sorts of moods.

Her moods were always this terrible, weren't they? He looked at his hands underneath the table, shuddering mildly. How could things seem so real and possible before the other weekend when he was at the beach and he was being coached to act on his feelings? When she was sick and he got her a glass of water in an effort to nurse her back to health? When they were playing video games together? Why was she nice one second and then mean the next? What controlled that?

It could have just been the sickness. He frowned and clenched his hands into fists. That was it. Now that she's all better she wouldn't want to interact with him for more than ten minutes. And to think, things were starting to look at least _somewhat_ promising.

He felt someone poking her shoulder, "So tense…" He heard Rika say to his left, "Rika can help loosen you up…" She whispered.

"Get off." He said bitterly, his shoulders wilting as he kept staring at the floor.

"So…what should the Neighbor's Club do next as a group?" Kodaka asked, trying to break at least some of the tension.

"Rika has another game she wants to test out." Rika smiled.

"You do?" Sena's eyes lit up.

Kodaka frowned and held his hands up, "No freaking way! Every time we play one of those games, I get stuck with a useless character!"

"Useless character?" Cadmus asked.

Kodaka nodded, "Depending on the role you choose, even the manliest one, you'll get something useless. You'll have no powers, no attacks, your outfit will be terrible, and you'll be the laughing stock of the entire group. With my dumb luck, it'll happen a _third_ or _fourth_ time. So count me out. I'm not getting embarrassed again."

"What about you, Cadmus?" Rika asked, clasping her hands together.

Cadmus closed his eyes and crossed his arms, "No." He said, "Playing a game that's out to get guys doesn't exactly sound like a smart idea."

"Aw…come on, please…?"

"…is there a class with a giant axe, and some knives?"

"Rika doesn't think so."

"I'm not interested."

"Aw…there's no point in having Rika bring it in then, it's better if everyone plays…"

"Well, how did the beach go?" Yozora looked up.

"It was great, we all had a lot of fun." Sena said, "The best part was probably when I trashed Cadmus and his stupid team in volleyball!"

Cadmus growled, "It's just a stupid game…" He muttered, practically unheard due to Sena's laughter.

"Please, I doubt you won with any actual skill, Meat." Yozora said, "You probably cheated or something."

"I did not cheat!" Sena protested, "What's so hard to believe that I actually won with skill and talent."

"Everything."

"Fell right into that one." Cadmus muttered.

"Well then, maybe there's another sport or something we can play." Kodaka said.

Cadmus shrugged, "It's a good idea as any."

"Ha! I bet I could totally own at any sort of sport you throw at me!" Sena grinned.

"Though maybe we'll have to tie water balloons up and have her sit out a game or two…"

"Hey, that's so rude, you stupid jerk! Don't use water balloons as if it's going to stick as an insult!"

Cadmus frowned, "If we want the others to be psyched about playing, you'll have to tone it down with the competitiveness, alright?"

"Like you were any better."

"Tch. I was just feeding off your tensely charged energy, that's all."

Yozora sighed, hastily scribbling down answers to her homework, "Sports are…okay I guess…we should practice them in case we ever end up being friends with athletic people."

Cadmus rolled his eyes. There she goes again. Everything was a 'practice run for when they actually make friends.' This was only limited to Yozora being thick, right? It wasn't actually what the others thought too?

"What about soccer?" Kodaka asked.

"Yes! I totally own at that one!" Sena cheered.

Cadmus slumped slightly in his seat, "I don't know…I feel like kicking a ball around a grass field gets tedious after a while…" He said, only assuming that Yozora's quiet groan meant that she hated the idea too. Or maybe it was just seeing Sena so pleased for more than five minutes.

"Football?" Kodaka asked.

"Ooh, yes!" Rika pumped both her fists up, "We should put Kodaka and Cadmus on separate teams." She trembled with excitement, dropping her voice a pitch or two to one of announcement or of narration, "Kodaka charges through the field with the ball, heading for the end zone to make a touchdown! But then, he's suddenly stopped by Cadmus!" She paused slightly for dramatic effect, "Prideful lineman Cadmus refuses to let Kodaka pass and make the winning touchdown! It would be an embarrassment to his team! So the two bristling, muscly men tackle each other all over the filthy ground! The ball has been flung aside, the play long since over, but…Cadmus and Kodaka don't know where the game end and their feelings begin! They begin stripping each other down, taking off those pesky helmets and shoulder pads…followed by the jerseys…to get some of that skin-to-skin contact—"

"Denied." Kodaka and Cadmus said at the same time, the latter grouchily crossing his arms. Yozora's expression (aside from being beet red like everyone else) suggested that, were she not working on her homework, that Rika would have been smacked by her flyswatter of doom.

"So soccer and football are out…and we already played volleyball…" Yukimura said quietly.

"I mean, it's not like we couldn't just play volleyball _again_." Cadmus leaned his head on a fist, "This time, Yozora would actually get to play." He said, when she scoffed and half-laughed, he said, "Or…maybe not…"

"What about baseball?" Kodaka asked.

"Rika doesn't really see a constructive point for baseball…" Rika said, "Though…the _bats_ are very useful for—"

Cadmus perked up, slamming a fist on the table, "Damn it, Rika!" He shouted, then sighed, "Jeez…if we let her, she's gonna perv up every sport in existence…"

"Baseball's pointless." Yozora said, "It's way too much effort, to set all that crap up just to get all sweaty and exhausted in the end, it's such a waste."

"Jeez…" Cadmus looked at her, "You've shot down like _every_ idea we've come up with, what's your deal?"

"Nothing." She glared at her homework, "Sports and all that athletic crap just reminds me of all the stupid normals enjoying their fake and frilly lives, alright? Is that really what we need to stoop to?"

"I remember this." He said, "You were ranting about all this normal and fake crap when we first met…by the roadside barrier, right?"

Her cheeks went pink, most likely due to the fact that all the other members were now either staring at Cadmus or herself. This was also the _only_ time Cadmus had referenced their nightly angst meetings, aside from when he first joined the club. "Pfft, shut up, Scruffy…"

"No, screw that." He said. His adamant nature on the matter surprising even himself a bit. "I wanna know. What the hell do you have against these normal people anyway? Or that they're supposedly 'fake'? Like…I don't get it. I _still_ don't get it…I didn't get it back then and I still don't now. I get that this whole thing was established for us to make friends, and to be less of an anti-social entity…but…I mean, if we hate everyone else…for being _normal_ …then what's the point?"

"It's nothing you would understand, Scruffy."

"Don't bother, Cadmus." Sena sighed, "Trying to understand Yozora's inner functioning is like repeatedly trying to bash your head into a wall. It's painful and a waste of effort."

"Quiet, sand bags!" She snapped.

"There's also basketball." Kodaka listed.

Yozora's face relaxed, she looked ahead, "That one doesn't sound too terrible…"

"Call the freaking newsroom." Cadmus said, "Yozora doesn't hate one of our ideas."

"That's enough, Scruffy."

"Yes!" Sena smiled, "I own at basketball too!"

"Okay, well, now that you've said that…I may have to reconsider my decision…"

"Aw, no fair!"

"Still…maybe sports are a bit too complicated for a bunch of misfits such as all of us." Yukimura said, then she hastily added, "If…if you don't me saying…"

"Eh, kinda." Cadmus said, "I feel like out of everyone in the club, only about like…three of us are actually fit enough or well-equipped to play anyway…"

"I mean, at least we had fun at the beach…that means something, right?" Sena asked.

"Ugh, I'd rather die than go to Meat's house…" Yozora said.

"Screw you!"

"Guys, settle down." Kodaka said, and immediately they were silenced. Cadmus was shocked, even though he had seen it in action plenty of times. They would go at each other like rebellious wolves, and Kodaka could end it with a snap of his fingers.

It would be a lie to say that none of that made him jealous. How come he couldn't end conflict so easily? There were a few answers, all obvious and all of them he didn't like. Kodaka had been around much longer, much longer than a newbie like himself, at least. He also had a sterner tone of voice. One that would be listened to rather than laughed at. Cadmus had neither of these things, and even if he did, Yozora almost seemed to hate him more than anyone else in the club, with the exception of Sena.

Sena stood up slowly, "Maybe we should just go then…it's getting late, and we're not going to come up with something tonight…not with this one in one of her moods." She nodded at Yozora, who in exchange muttered a few curses of her own under her breath.

Cadmus watched as everyone started to pack up and leave the club room, "Um…excuse me…Dark Knight?" Kobato's tiny voice asked.

"Aw…I almost forgot Kobato was here!" Sena cooed, "What, with all the tenseness…come here, cutie pie—"

Yozora, who was evidently tired of not being able to reprimand people, finally got ahold of her swatter, and Sena was smacked back, "What is it, Sumeragi?" She asked, getting to her level.

"Um…I…I was…" Her voice only got quieter, "I was wondering if you wanted to come over at some point…to our house…to play the newest Fullmetal Necromancer game with me."

Yozora smiled, "Of course." She looked up at Kodaka, "If…it's okay with Kodaka."

"Sure, it's fine." Kodaka said.

"What the hell?" Sena snapped, "Why is it always Yozora? I haven't been to his house once yet, and I'm freaking dating him!"

"No, stay back monster!" Kobato said, then she switched to her vampire voice, "Ku, ku, ku…I have countless wards guarding the house…should you attempt to sneak in."

"Besides, I thought you hated going to other people's house." Sena looked at Yozora.

"I hate your house." Yozora said, "Kodaka's house is completely fine."

"But you've never even been to my house, you witch!" She screamed. The fact that her face was checkered with a flyswatter pattern only made the display funnier.

Cadmus was surprised. Yozora could be really good with kids when she actually felt like using effort to do so.

Although this cute surprise was quickly drowned out by an unnerving feeling, as mostly everyone began to file out of the clubroom. It seemed like Yozora had gone to Kodaka's house quite a bit, enough for it to become a regular time thing. But Kodaka was dating Sena, right? So why did he have to worry?

Maybe it was Kobato. It was no secret she _hated_ Sena, yet looked up to Yozora like an older sister. Maybe her visits with her 'Dark Knight' was influencing more than Cadmus could realize.

Or was he just getting jealous for the sake of getting jealous? Was he going to flip out in his head _every_ time he saw Yozora interacting with another guy? Well, it was made a bit worse considering that Yozora literally pined for Kodaka, and he would be a fool to just, assume the crush was gone. She still had hope that something disastrous would occur between he and Sena, leaving him single and vulnerable for her, he just knew it. Yozora was clever as she was cruel.

Cadmus blinked a few times, looking around. Everyone had left the clubroom by now, except for two people, one of them being himself. They were standing by where they usually sat, with their arms crossed. Cadmus swallowed hard, they weren't smiling.

And three people in the club had faces just situated so that if they weren't smiling, they looked horrendously pissed off. Kodaka, being the obvious first one, while according to Sena, Yozora and Cadmus qualify for this as well. So Cadmus did what he could to play it cool, he crossed his arms right back, "Kodaka…what's up?"

"We need to talk."

Damn, so there really _was_ something on Kodaka's mind. But the question was, what? What did Cadmus do to piss him off? He gathered that Kodaka was the most sensible member in the club, in other words, the hardest to anger. There was also the sense of comradery the two had at being the only two guys in the club. Cadmus didn't want to throw his newfound friendship with Kodaka away so easily, so to say that he'd be walking on eggshells during this conversation was an understatement.

"So what's up?" Cadmus asked, it was the exact same question he asked before, but it was a lot more serious this time, given that Kodaka looked like he wanted to murder him with his bare hands. (He knew that it was Kodaka's natural expression, but he still didn't know what to expect).

"Remember when we were talking about the fact that the other girls were going to go after you?"

"Yup. But don't worry, I can fend Rika off for another year or two…or…however long we got until we graduate."

"I wasn't talking about Rika."

"Well then who the hell are you talking about? I mean…two of the members are underage…and then there's Rika…who does that leave?"

He didn't respond, he just stared at the table.

He clenched his fists, "Kodaka, what the hell are you on about—"

"Sena told me everything."

Kodaka's statement caused Cadmus to stop midsentence. The entire room felt cold after this fact was revealed. Cadmus swore under his breath. Of course, _of course_ , Sena immediately told her boyfriend everything there was to know about Cadmus's feelings for Yozora. He severely underestimated the value of high school relationships, he supposed.

He had no idea why when Sena figured out, he was mildly embarrassed, yet when Kodaka found out, it felt like he committed a major crime. He looked away from Kodaka's gaze, maybe it was because Kodaka could _detect_ the jealousy oozing off of him. After all, it wasn't hard, Cadmus should just consider himself lucky that only _two_ other people knew about his crush on Yozora.

He rose from his seat, the tone of voice suggested that he was perfectly fine with going down in a blaze of glory, "Tch. So what? Big whoop, I like Yozora…what of it?"

Kodaka sighed, "I really think you should reconsider—"

"Reconsider?" Cadmus growled, "Reconsider?" He asked, "Why the hell should I do that? You're already dating Sena, yet you won't let anyone get near Yozora too? What the hell is that about! You can't…you can't just _hog_ them both like that. Which one is it gonna be?"

Kodaka's scowl deepened, "That's not what this is about." When he rose his voice, it gave Cadmus a chill, but he eventually calmed down, going back to his normal tone, "I mean…you saw how broken Yozora is, right? I don't think it's a good idea to…try to upset things with a relationship right now."

"So…what…we just ignore her instead?" He challenged, "If anything, when people are hurting, we need to do the opposite."

"Yes, but there's a difference between genuinely helping someone and just trying to use puppy love to solve a problem, it feels like you're doing the latter."

It was Cadmus's turn to scowl, "How dare you."

"I don't know what happened when you two first met, I also don't know how much you know about her, or…know about any of us…but, whatever you're planning, I wouldn't do it."

"Tch, I know enough." Cadmus said. He actually had no idea what amounted to 'enough,' but he wasn't going to stop sticking to his guns now.

"Cadmus…" Kodaka's tone grew even softer, "I don't mean anything by it…really…I don't want to escalate things…I just think…it's a dangerous path…what you're trying to do…"

The door to the clubroom slowly creaked open, but neither of them noticed, given how tense the argument was, "I don't care about how dangerous it is. I don't care about the risks." Cadmus slammed a fist on the table, "I like Yozora, and I'm going to see this until the end, got it?"

Somehow, the room got even colder. Cadmus and Kodaka felt a light draft come in from the now open doorway. They both turned to see Yozora, who was looking at Cadmus with a stunned expression.

Cadmus went stark white, returning her gaze. He backed away, nearly tripping over a chair or two in the process, "No…no…no…" He shook his head, quivering with fear, "This isn't…no…this isn't how I…"

Yozora walked into the clubroom, picking up a book at the head of the table, "I just forgot something…" She left.

Cadmus calmed down, his breathing returned to a normal rate, and his shoulders relaxed. Then he clenched his fists in anger, he snarled, rushing ahead, bolting out of the clubroom and sprinting at such speeds that would make a professional track runner jealous, "Yozora!" He screamed.

Yozora hadn't gone that far ahead of him, she whirled around when she saw him run towards her. She still looked a little shaken, yet she gave him the floor.

Once he stopped in front of him, he waited for himself to stop panting before he spoke, "Yozora, I…I didn't want you to figure it out…that way…I didn't want you to figure it out…like that…figure out my feelings for you. I…I wanted to tell you myself, I _swear_. Please…please…let's just…go out sometime this week, I swear…I won't—"

"I'm not interested, Scruffy."

His jaw dropped. He hated how cold he felt, and how pale he must've looked at that moment, "Uh…right…I…sorry…I'll see you tomorrow…then…"

His face was laser-focused on the ground at this point, he didn't have the courage to watch her walk away. He simply just heard her footsteps as she left him out there. He fell to his knees once he knew she was gone. He probably stared at that ground for hours, not moving, not having the will to. He couldn't look at the path ahead, or even the night sky above, he was paralyzed by circumstances.

* * *

 **A/N:** Heh, heh, heh, did I mention that this was going to be slow burn? Until next time!


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** Hello everyone! I am back, this time with Haganai…but who knows what I'll update next. I honestly never usually have any idea whatsoever in terms of what I'm going to work on next. But I feel as though my Haganai fic needed it's time in the spotlight. I hope you all enjoy!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

He thought his school skipping days were over. Apparently not.

He had missed a day or two of school already. Nothing too big, but with Cadmus, it was really starting to add up. But he just couldn't bring himself to go back. Not back to school, where his work would be completed even worse than how it usually was, which was _really_ saying something, considering how poor his grades were in the first place.

And the Neighbors Club? Forget it, if he wasn't going back to school, then he _definitely_ wasn't going back. At least with the former, there was a good chance he wouldn't see any of his club mates, as he wasn't actually in any classes with them. He didn't want to put up with their annoying shenanigans, their worry, which, as warranted as it probably was, he couldn't bear.

And he couldn't bear to be gazed upon by her again.

His grip clenched around his blankets. Yesterday, he had spent most of the day in bed and today he suspected the same thing would happen. Was it cowardly? Yes. Something he should be proud of in the slightest? No. Maybe he even got texts from his friends in the club, but he hadn't bothered checking his phone at all.

It was funny to him. This all started because he berated Yozora for skipping school and the club and ignoring all of her friends, and here he was doing the exact same thing.

And yet he still couldn't understand where the light at the end of the tunnel was. Where normal was, what the hell was he supposed to do now? He had never liked a girl before, so he had no idea what would happen when he finally went ahead and asked one to date him. But it felt terrible. Bitter, cold, unwanted. He felt a weight within his heart, one pulling him down, like gravity had doubled. He just didn't have the motivation to get anything done, he barely did before. Was this what genuine heartache was?

Why did he even feel this way? He wasn't even convinced that he liked Yozora in the first place. And really, what was he expecting? It was Yozora, there were only a few outcomes to confessing to her, and none of them were good. What, did he expect that she would don a smile finally? Maybe her voice would go up and octave or two and she would giggle and accept? That they'd date happily and get married? Who was he trying to kid?

"Damn it…" He brushed a few tears out of his eyes. It was shameful to be crying. Men shouldn't cry, especially not in front of other people. When he heard the door creak open, he brushed more of his tears away as quick as he could.

It was his mother, who looked very concerned, rightfully so. "Cadmus?" She asked, letting herself in, "You're not…going to school today, are you?"

His shoulders wilted, after what felt like a few minutes passing, he shook his head.

"I'm just…worried about you…you've…missed a lot of school…and…and if your father figures out that you've skipped these two days well…"

"I know." He said quietly. The emotional abuse that man was capable of was frightening, regardless of how well or poor Cadmus was doing in academics.

She sat at the edge of his bed, "Did you…did you want to talk about it?"

Tell her about his absolute joke of a life? His failure? Yeah, no thanks. He shook his head again.

She reached over and hugged him, "Well…if you ever do want to talk…just remember…that…that I'm here, okay? I'll always be here to help you. I'll…I'll keep it from your father…about school today…but, you should really try and head in tomorrow, at least."

His eyes widened, but she couldn't see, given that she was looking the other way and hugging him. So she was lying to his father about his absences the last two days to protect him from his wrath?

Honestly he took his mother for granted. He should really cherish her more. If he didn't have his mother, he probably would have been dead. He and his father couldn't really hold a conversation for very long until it basically devolved into 'so how's school? Did you do your homework? I hear colleges are looking for…' and so on and so forth.

Cadmus hugged his mother back, feeling the tears wanting to come, but by some miracle, he refused them entry. He quietly thanked her and she left, leaving him to sit alone, with nothing but his own thoughts, for the second day in a row.

He could sing, play guitar, play music. Do something along that avenue. But he didn't necessary feel in a creative mood, and belting out his feelings with a song only made him feel better about short-term dilemmas and issues, not something like this. It wouldn't be worth the effort to get out of bed and get dressed.

Maybe going back to school was better than this, but he would do anything to avoid Yozora.

* * *

One of the things Cadmus hated most about going back to school were the teachers drowning him in make-up work. Especially the ones that knew him well. Because they knew that he was growing up to be a useless delinquent and that was that. It was basically an uphill battle to prove them wrong and that yes, he was going to make something of himself.

It wasn't _so_ bad though. He wasn't really noticed that much, and he just lulled about in class. He preferred being alone, undetected. Maybe if he was lucky he could just skip out on the club and everything would be fine.

He clenched his fists. No, he wasn't a coward. He was going to face this head-on. He just hoped dearly that Yozora wouldn't be there.

His thoughts went from 'should I' to 'shouldn't I' so much that by the time he actually headed for the clubroom, the sun was setting. He was going to be really mad if he did all that debating only to open the door and find nobody there. But then again, it would be his own fault for having so many second thoughts in the first place.

Only one other person was in the room when he entered. It was Sena, packing up, by the looks of things. She smiled when she saw him, "Oh, hey, we were wondering what happened to you. Where've you been?"

Cadmus slumped in his seat, taking a while to answer her. He had no idea why he decided it was a good idea to get so comfortable. Sitting in his chair as if club business was about to be discussed, it was just the two of them. "Make-up work." He lied. "From…from being sick for a day or two."

She gave an over-the-top gasp, "I bet you got _Yozora's_ stupid sickness, that harpy!"

"Doubt it, mine wasn't nearly as bad as hers." He said, "How come you and Kodaka didn't go home together?"

"Hmm? Oh…he went somewhere with Kobato…and Kobato didn't want me to come…" She wilted, "She calls me a monster! Could you believe that?"

Yes. He could.

He looked around, taking a bored sigh. Sure, Yozora wasn't here, which was great, but even being _in_ the clubroom was a bit too much for him. It just painfully reminded him of how much he screwed up. How shallow he really was. Without Yozora to think about, to fall back on, how connected was he with the rest of the club?

He treated Rika like dirt. Sure, Rika was a pervert, but it still stands that he tries to stay as far away from her as possible. Kodaka probably hated him at this point, after their little dispute the other day. Yukimura and Kobato were most likely scared of him, given that he out-delinquented Kodaka in terms of looks and personality. Maria liked him, but, she was a ten year-old kid, that's usually a given.

"You okay? You look kinda…pissed off." Sena broke him out of his reverie. "Or…I mean… _more_ pissed off than usual. You always looked pissed off, you probably have a better resting bitch face than Yozora—"

"I get it, I get it, you told me all this before." He said, "I'm fine. Completely freaking fine."

She didn't seem to like that answer. Another pause went by, Sena looked out the window, "Yozora likes bad boys."

His cheeks turned a weak shade of pink, "The hell am I supposed to do with that information?"

"Use it, genius." Their eyes met as she looked at him, "You're a bad boy. Yozora likes bad boys, do the math."

He blinked, "But…I kinda…already knew that information. She likes Kodaka…so…kinda a given."

"No, no, that's not what I mean." She shook her head, "One time we actually got her to agree to play one of my dating games…one where you're a girl who goes after guys."

"No kidding, really?" He asked, "She hates them more than life itself. And she hates her life."

She nodded, "Guess who she went after?"

"A Kodaka look-alike?"

"Well…no one at first, she just…maxed out her academic stats…and…it was really boring."

"Sounds like the real Yozora alright."

"But then the delinquent guy saved her in an alleyway and she started dating him. See? It can happen." She said, "He was different, still a delinquent, but, he looked different. Had a nice voice too, deep, sexy."

"Yeah, thanks Sena, that makes me feel fantastic."

"Ugh, point is, it's possible." She said, "She can like someone other than Kodaka, so I think the next thing you should do is—"

"Would you just drop it Sena?" He snapped, "Just…stop. Enough. Give it a rest already. It ain't gonna happen." He growled. Now he just felt worse off than before. Ever since he joined the damn club he just felt incredibly terrible and self-conscious about his voice.

Sena looked surprised, actually taking a step or two back, "Cadmus…" She said, "I don't get it…I…I thought you liked Yozora." She said in a small voice.

He blinked. This was starting to not make any sense at all.

Could it be? Could it be that Sena didn't know what happened two days ago?

Good grief, she didn't, did she? _None_ of them did. It was just himself, Yozora, and Kodaka that night. Hell, the latter probably didn't even know. He and Yozora were in the hallway, a considerable distance away from the clubroom.

Well this was great. Now he had to clear the air about it to _everyone_. Better him than someone else, he supposed.

"Sena…she…she shot me down…alright?"

"Oh my god…" Sena said, "She did? When? Recently? Don't lie to me…that couldn't have happened."

"Would I lie about something like this?" He snapped. Then he took a deep breath or two to calm down. No use taking this out on Sena. But what was her going to tell her? That he and Kodaka got into a huge argument about it and then his secret crush was blown in front of her and he had to spring his confession out much earlier than he intended?

"Uh…I uh…beyond my control…she found out that I liked her…and…well…I had to go out…guns blazing…" He sighed, "Guess I really did go out, huh? Feels like I'm dead inside…"

"Aw…well…that doesn't mean she doesn't like you…there's always next time."

"Pretty sure there isn't a next time in this case." He said bitterly.

"Come on, there could be…girls can be real bitches sometimes…"

"Coming from you, that makes a lot of sense."

"Hey!"

"I'm gonna give it a rest for a little while." He stood up, "Goodnight Sena."

"Right…" She said, "Night Cadmus."

He headed out, walking down the halls. Maybe Sena was right, maybe he did have a chance. One could argue that with Kodaka on her mind, that of course she wouldn't give Cadmus the time of day. Liking Kodaka was simply a phase, and once she got over him things would get better.

Yeah right, there was no use getting optimistic about it now. What was the use? You can't just wave a crush away with a magic wand. He was living proof of that. Despite how conflicted he felt about Yozora right now, he knew there were still feelings for her deep down. He hated them, but they existed nonetheless. As much as he wanted to get on with his life, he knew that this was going to get worse before it was going to get better.

"So…it's still no?" He heard a voice far away.

It was her.

"Yozora…I…uh…how could you even ask me this? I don't understand why…you…you know I'm with Sena. So…so you know what I'm going to say." The other voice belonged to Kodaka.

His eyes widened. _Shit._ Out of all the members in the Neighbors Club, he didn't want to be seen by either of them, at all. The halls were coming to a turn, so he had no choice but to back into a perpendicular wall. Willingly or not, he was eavesdropping. Which he probably shouldn't have been doing, but for now he didn't really care.

"I know…but…I just thought…that…that maybe it wasn't all that you expected?" It was strange to hear her voice so vulnerable, so soft, withdrawn, timid. It was most likely a gift only available to Kodaka.

His face contorted into that of a jealous scowl. _What the hell am I listening to right now?_ He thought. This was by no means nothing casual, Kodaka sounded firm, while Yozora was on the defensive, bearing her soul to him.

No way.

Was she confessing to him? _While_ he was dating Sena?

"Yozora…no…just, just no…this…this isn't appropriate…at all." Kodaka said, sounding just about as taken aback by this entire scenario as Cadmus was. "You know I'm with Sena…how could you put me in an awkward positon like this?"

Because that was her specialty. Cadmus crossed his arms and looked at the ground, in an attempt to better hear the conversation.

"And you need to be careful with what you do when you're over…" Kodaka went on, "Because…you shouldn't do that at other people's houses."

He blinked. What? Do what at other people's houses? Damn it, he wasn't going to specify, was he?

"I mean, what if Kobato saw you?"

"I get it." She said abruptly, but she sounded defeated, frustrated. Which was impressive because that's all Cadmus knew her as. To think she could sound _more_ downcast than that. He heard shuffling, "Whatever, I'm going home."

Cadmus's head snapped up, he had to get out of there fast, or things were going to get very ugly, very fast. He looked back from where he came, trying to reroute another more complicated way out of the building so he wouldn't be seen. He began speed walking so he could get a head start.

So Yozora tore a page out of his book and threw everything on the line for a crush, did she? Honestly it raised more questions than answers at this point. Now he had so many more questions, many, many questions.

He felt a surge of new emotions too. But he didn't know which one to feel first, but he was Cadmus, so anger volunteered itself with a raised hand.

What the hell was she thinking? Just how obsessed was she with Kodaka? Did boundaries even matter, real or otherwise? Would she break the rules of all known social structures until she got what she wanted?

Clearly her attempts were going to get more and more desperate until a result was yielded, good or bad. This must have been how things were before he got into the club too. Didn't she start the damn thing just to get it on with him?

Her actions bothered him, but his jealousy over them did even more so. Why did it _still_ bother him that Yozora had a thing for him? He had asked her out, got promptly rejected, it was time to move on, onward to another course, to the future, but he just couldn't move forward.

A bitter smile appeared on his face. Maybe he was more or less turning into her, becoming her. She wasn't going to let Kodaka go, and he wasn't going to let her go.

But this wasn't healthy for either of them, this triangle, square, amoeba, whatever the hell they created. To his surprise, he and Yozora were in a similar boat. The only difference was that he was willing to let it go, albeit painfully, while Yozora didn't seem to really take 'no' for an answer.

He couldn't stay for that. He wasn't going to watch this all go down in flames. He'd have to quit the club, almost as soon as he joined it. Which in itself was unfortunate because his mother loved the fact that he made new friends and joined a club. But he had never anticipated for there to be so much mean-spiritedness, so much competition, treachery, all in a club that's _supposed_ to be designed to make new friends.

Of course, he knew the truth. The 'make new friends' was merely a façade, created by Yozora so she could get closet to Kodaka. She really did plan out in advance, didn't she? Every little thing she did, there was something in it for her, to further her warped agenda.

So the questions was, would he tell anyone that he was leaving, or would he simply ghost and disappear altogether? Maybe he shouldn't leave. Sure, he left a controversial taste in people's mouths, but some of the members liked him there, maybe? And what would he tell his mom? And he'd see his father a lot more if he wasn't staying out at the club until the evening. That gave him a chill or two. But it was hard to determine which was the lesser of two evils.

He knew one thing for sure. Things were going to change from here on out. They've simmered for long enough.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks to Starwar98 for the nice review. I again apologize for the wait, and I'll see when I can get back to all of you!


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Here's chapter twelve! Tensions are really starting to rise in the Neighbor's Club, aren't they?

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

School dragged on at its typical slow pace. As afraid of the fireworks in the Neighbors Club as he was, at this point, he wished he could just get it over with already.

Instead he sat through class, listening to the teacher drone on and on. Keeping focus during lectures was never really one of his strong suits. Is this what he wanted his life to go back to? Pointless lectures and high expectations from his father? If he quit the club, then that's all that would be awaiting him.

Not that the alternative was any better. He didn't exactly leave Yozora or Kodaka on a high note and wasn't excited about seeing either party again. So those were his choices. Not the worst case of rock and a hard place, but notable.

"Hey, Cadmus!" He heard a feminine voice from behind him.

He blinked a few times in surprise. Right now, the gears in his brain were in 'school mode' rather than 'club mode.' So it took him a few minutes to realize that, yes indeed he recognized that voice.

He whirled around, seeing Sena and Kodaka. After mildly swearing under his breath, he gave a small nod, walking alongside the two of them, "What's up?"

"Nothing, I hardly recognized you in the school uniform." Sena said, given him a quick glance.

"Oh, this?" Cadmus glared down at himself, "I have to wear this stupid thing. If I wear the black leather that I wear at the club, that chick from the Student Council who pricked me at the blood drive will have my head."

"You go through all that effort to change clothes before coming to the club? Jeez…"

"I'm more comfortable in my own clothes." He grunted, "Besides…this shade of white and dark green have no business belonging with each other at all. It's a mess."

"Pfft…I didn't take you for someone so color-coordinated." Sena laughed.

"Shut up!" Cadmus snapped, as Sena's cackles grew louder and louder, as Kodaka mumbled something along the lines of, 'I don't see what's so bad about the uniform'.

"So Kodaka and I were about to go out somewhere and get some dinner. Did you want to come with?" Sena smiled.

"What? You mean, ditch the club?" Cadmus asked, "I mean…y-yeah…sure. If…if Kodaka's okay with it."

"He's fine, he's fine." She rushed ahead of them, "I might stop at home to change into something nice!"

Cadmus and Kodaka watched her run off. They then exchanged a glance, looking ahead quickly after that. They continued walking together at a much slower pace. "Listen…Kodaka…" Cadmus started.

"Hmm?"

"I wanted to say I was sorry…about all that…the other night. I was way outta line."

"Look…it's alright…you didn't really do anything wrong."

"But I said things wrong." He said, "I…I got angry…didn't think before I spoke…sometimes I don't think I ever do…" He said, "I stepped over the line, and said things to you I shouldn't have. And for what? I wasn't even making a good point. I was all defensive for nothing."

Kodaka looked down slightly, "Sena told me what happened…what you said to Yozora…and what she said back."

"Yeah, shot me down."

He gave a wistful smile, "I'm surprised you went through with it at all. In that situation…I feel like anyone else would have ran for the hills…"

He smiled back, "Hey, we Vanderbilt's stick to our guns…even if it's a zero percent chance."

"I'll have to remember that one."

His smile faded, he looked ahead, "Still…I screwed up…I almost ruined our friendship…or…acquaintance…ship…whatever you want to call it." He looked up at him, "Look, our friendship is important to me. We're the only two dudes in the club, and I think we got a thing or two in common. I think…in the heat of the moment…I forgot that…and now it's been almost three days since I've been to the club…"

"Trust me…lots of us have skipped the club whenever things got ugly." He said, "Myself included." He added ruefully.

A small nod, "That's why I feel bad about skipping today…I feel like I should go back soon…"

"It'll be alright. We'll be there tomorrow, besides, I think we're too late to talk Sena out of the plan anyway."

"Yeah, she's probably getting changed as we speak." He muttered, "Alright, I'll get out of this trash uniform and into my real clothes and meet you there."

* * *

He was glad that their agreed-upon location was within walking distance. (Although that was the case with most of the locations in this town). He would much rather be late than early, not wanting to sit at a table or booth all by himself.

He craned his neck up to see the sign. It looked like a nice place, very nice. Then again, _Sena_ was in charge of where they were going, so the common piss poor restaurants weren't exactly going to do it for her, were they?

He found Kodaka sitting in a booth all the way in the corner of the restaurant. He assumed he and Sena would want to sit together, so he sat across from him. He adjusted the sleeves on his black trench coat, "Hold on, this doesn't make any sense…Sena left to get ready _before_ either of us…how come she's not here yet?"

Kodaka shrugged, "She usually takes a while to get ready." He said, "And waking up…forget about it…you're better off getting a few chores done before you get a text back from her."

Cadmus snickered for a while, only to be interrupted by a call from the center of the restaurant. Speak of the devil, Sena had arrived at long last.

Kodaka blushed almost immediately upon seeing her. He and Cadmus wore their typical street clothes, while Sena clearly took the initiative to get as dressed up as possible. She wore a nice striped blouse with a jacket over it, and a skirt. Her outfit did everything it possibly could to include almost every color of the rainbow. Not exactly Cadmus's style, him being the lord of monochrome, but it was impressive in its own right.

Sena giggled, "Got something to say Kodaka?"

When he said nothing, Cadmus smirked and leaned slightly over the table, giving him a teasing slug on the shoulder, "C'mon man."

Jolted, Kodaka smiled, "You look very nice, Sena."

She giggled once again, squeezing herself into the booth next to Kodaka. He pecked her on the cheek. But having none of that, she leaned in and kissed him on the lips. Cadmus didn't know exactly where to look while they were making out, so he settled on the floor. They probably didn't kiss for very long, but to him, it felt like forever.

Wait a minute. There was the two of them, and then him. That meant three. A couple, and, some other random guy.

Wasn't there a phrase for that?

"Ugh…I wonder how long it'll take for us to finally order." Sena said.

"I already ordered at the front." Kodaka said.

"You did?"

He nodded, "For the two of us…anyway…" He uneasily looked at Cadmus, "I really wasn't sure what you wanted…so I didn't want to get something you didn't like."

"Oh, that's cool. I'll be right back." Cadmus rocketed out of his booth and headed to the front. He scanned all the choices. Maybe he'd get the soup, although he'd been having soup quite a bit lately, maybe he should change it up.

He settled for a pork soup. Not exactly a departure from what he typically ate, but he definitely knew it would be something he liked. There was a carnivorous eater, and then there was Cadmus. The more meat on his plate or in his bowl, the better.

When he returned to their table, Sena was passionately ranting (when wasn't she?) about the recent activities in the club, "And the she blew it _again_ …and picked the most awkward answer out of the three of them…I just don't get it!"

Kodaka sighed, "Seems like Rika playing any of those kinds of games is just asking for trouble…"

Cadmus blinked from one to the other. He couldn't remember the last time he's seen Rika, it was most likely a few days at this point.

"I know…she must be _trying_ to play poorly on purpose…" Sena said.

"Or she just wants the hidden bonus sex scene or whatever the hell it is." Kodaka said. "She probably just wants to skip to it and avoid extra work. Wouldn't put it past her."

Cadmus ran a hand through his long, wild hair, "We talking about those visual novel…thingies?"

"They're more than just _visual novels_ …they're great games." Sena gushed, "You can explore the lives of a high schooler and date whoever you'd like! It's a romantic paradise!" She sighed and blushed at her own description, "I wonder if Yukimura would ever want to play one…"

Kodaka shrugged, "I don't think anything that bad would happen if she played. Seems relatively harmless."

"I have to admit, it'd be pretty damn funny if she played." Cadmus said.

"Or Cadmus could play one." Sena listed.

"That's a terrible idea."

"Aw…come on, you should give it a try."

"Pfft, I can't even date in the _real world_ , let alone some video game."

"It's still fun."

He rolled his eyes, eventually looking at Kodaka, "Has Kodaka ever had to play one of these games?"

"Not…at the club…but…" Kodaka's eyes grew tired just remembering it, "Sena forced me to play an entire saga of them once…in a single night…still…still think I'm recovering from that."

"Hey, that's not true! You had fun!" Sena argued, while Cadmus laughed.

Cadmus kept hearing a number get called. The same number. Out of paranoia, he looked at his ticket, "Crap! That's us!" He jumped up, heading for the front counter. He came back juggling their three orders, setting each serving in front of them all.

"Ugh…" Sena put her hands on her hips, "What are we, peasants? Why do we have to walk up to the counter to get our food? Shouldn't they have people handing it out for us?"

"Sena…its fine." Kodaka said.

"It's an outrage!"

"Sena, the counter's like…ten feet from our table…I think I can handle it…" Cadmus said.

"Hmm." She said, taking a bite, "Well…at least it tastes good…"

Cadmus took a spoonful of his soup, nodding in agreement, "Better than that soup I had at the other side of town with Yozora."

"Wait…when did you have soup with Yozora?" Sena asked, as they both looked at him.

 _And…this is why you keep your mouth shut…Cadmus._ He took another big bite, chewing extra slowly so he had time to think of a response when he inevitably swallowed. "When we first met." He said, "Outside on the road, by the guardrail. Freaking late as hell…I wouldn't be surprised if it was three in the morning or something."

She looked intrigued, "Why don't you tell us what really happened when you two first met anyway?"

A stunned pause. Cadmus blinked stupidly, even Kodaka eyed Sena, wondering where she was going with this. Cadmus took another bite, "I basically told you guys everything already. There really isn't anything new to add. She was in my old…slumming spot I guess…all out of sorts cause…" He pointed at them with his spoon, "You two were dating…or…no…we didn't know whether you were or you weren't yet. But she was all antsy about it. No matter what I said, she was adamant that she had to be with Kodaka." He said.

"Huh…" Sena said, "I see."

"And she's _still_ like that." He pointed out, "After all this. After all this fuss to get her back, and to get her to be happy, or at least content, she still thinks that way. She's still hardwired to you." He looked at Kodaka, "Not a damn thing has changed."

"You don't have to tell him that twice." Sena said, "She's _obsessed_ with him. Just the other day, she asked him out."

"Yeah." He said slowly, "I know."

"You _knew?_ " They both asked.

"I was passing by." Cadmus said, "Should've mentioned it earlier…"

"What the hell, man?" Sena asked.

"Tch, like it's my fault Yozora decided to spill her guts out two feet away from the clubroom." He snarled, then he relaxed a bit, "Huh…guess we have more in common than we thought…we both got shot down."

A light pause filled the air, as Sena kept angrily stabbing at her food, "Not to mention masturbating to him in his house."

Dead silence. Aside from Kodaka's fork clattering on the table in crimson shock. Cadmus slowly removed the spoon from his mouth, "She did what now?"

Sena blinked a few times, "Oh…I just thought…that…we were all on the same page about that…"

"Nope."

"What the hell?! You said you overheard that!"

"Not _that!_ " He growled, "She seriously did that?!"

"Yes, she did it the last time she went over to his house."

Kodaka took a deep breath, muttering something along the lines of excusing himself, he got up and left, presumably headed to a restroom.

"Aw…crap…" Cadmus said, "Poor guy…this is all my fault…I brought it up."

Sena nervously looked to where Kodaka was going, then back to Cadmus, "I don't know how much more of this he can take. It…it's just going to keep getting worse like this…"

He gave a defeated sigh, "I know."

"Which is why you and her need to work something together—"

"No. I'm not doing that anymore." He said, adamant. "Sena, she rejected me. And hell, even if we were together, it wouldn't really solve anything. She'd still be into Kodaka. She'd just be…going through the motions dating me…being with me would only benefit her as some sort of ploy to get into Kodaka's pants. Nothing more, nothing less."

"But…but don't you like her?"

His gaze fell on the table, "My feelings don't matter." He said, "Not now. Kodaka said it himself, puppy love outta me isn't gonna solve anything."

"But…then…how is this club gonna survive?" She asked, "It can't maintain itself if crap like this keeps going on."

"I know it can't." Cadmus said, "It…it really all depends on our President." He sighed, wanting to forget about this already. He wanted to forget about Yozora and get on with his life, but, no matter what he seemed to do, she always haunted his mind.

" _Listen. All of you, I want to make something very clear. I am nothing, I have become nothing, nothing but excrement on people's boots as they walk by. I've sunk to the lowest of the low. I don't have a childhood friend anymore, I don't have any friends anymore. I don't have anything likeable about myself for men. I ran away like a coward, my hair was burnt off, I threw up on someone, and I plagiarized." She quivered as she smiled, her face beet red and tears flowing down her cheeks, "I have nothing else to lose! I've hit rock bottom!"_

"Plagiarism."

"Hmm? What?" Sena asked.

"When the two of us came back to the clubroom, she and I…or…in my case it was my very first time coming to the clubroom in general…she ranted and got all mopey once she figured out you two were dating. Since then, I've gotten most of the dirt on her…but…she said she plagiarized something…is that true?"

"Ugh…it pisses me off just thinking about it…" Sena growled, "We were making a movie for the summer festival. And all of a sudden Yozora dreams up of this brilliant script, which was clearly too good to be true. Well, Kodaka did some research, and she ripped the whole thing off from an already existing film." She narrowed her eyes, "If we found out a day or two later, we would've been screwed. So yours truly came up with a new script and we made a pretty damn good movie out of it."

"Hmm…" He said. Running away, burnt hair, throwing up on someone, plagiarism. And now masturbation. When all those things were put together, it made her sound like a pretty terrible person.

But it wouldn't be any different if Cadmus voiced everything bad about himself, now would it?

That he was a jerk who cared more about his music than his schoolwork. That he kept this nonsense up, he'd probably have to repeat a year. That he and his father got into shouting matches because his father was a driven and passionate man, and he wasn't. That he ran away to his mommy with all of his problems because no one else understood him. That he dressed like punk and acted like one too.

His head hit the table, "My brain hurts…" He muttered, eventually looking up at Sena, "And I feel like such a freaking third wheel…"

"Third wheel?" Sena asked, the thought didn't really seem to occur to her, "Kodaka and I don't see it that way. We're just hanging out."

"Yeah but…if I wasn't here, you guys could…be making out or something…I don't know."

"Please, Kodaka only lets me get away with so much."

"But I know you can only get away with so much at the club with Yozora there and all…" He said.

She shrugged, "It's okay. If anything this was a little meeting to see the fate of the rest of the club."

"…you do realize if I ever do inexplicably end up with Yozora…she'll expect me to double-team you on the insults, right?"

"I'm prepared for it, minion."

"Hey!" He protested, as she laughed.

Kodaka returned to the table, both Cadmus and Sena looking a little worried as he came back. The former spoke first, "Hey man…I'm uh…I'm sorry…about bringing that up…" He said, "I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable, alright? I realize it's a sucky situation to be in."

Kodaka gave a small nod, "The only way this can better is if we all go to the Neighbor's Club tomorrow."

"That's right." Sena said, "For the best or for the worst, things are going to change."

* * *

 **A/N:** I think things are starting to reach a boiling point _really_ soon. Again, sorry for my spotty updates. I figured the least I could do was give you guys two chapters as a lil' present. I hope I'll be back soon.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** Hello, and here's chapter thirteen! Haganai is back in full swing, and I will now bombard you with consecutive chapters! Enjoy!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

"Are you sure?" Sena asked, for what felt like the billionth time.

"For the last freaking time, no." Cadmus said, "I don't wanna play it, it ain't my style…"

"But it's fun!"

"Fun, my ass." He said, "I'd rather just sit around and we can all play something together."

"Hmm…yeah right…" She scoffed. At the moment, Cadmus was walking with the happy couple to the clubroom. It would be the first time Cadmus had participated in a club meeting since he was shot down by Yozora, and he was conflicted, to say the least.

He would have been fine if that were all. Hell, if anything, he was proud of himself for being able to ask her out in the first place, especially in a situation like that.

But then she asked out Kodaka, and then he figured out that she, well, had a bit of private time in Kodaka's bathroom. He clenched his fists. Did that really make him jealous too? But why? She had the right to…do that…to whoever she wanted to.

But he knew that it was to him. Who else but Kodaka? And this was going to tick him off until the end of time, wasn't it? Didn't she get that he was dating Sena? When would that sink in? Part of him was glad that he was flanked by Kodaka and Sena. He would need all the help and distractions he could get to dilute the situation. As long as the subject was far away from the gross romantic undertones that afflicted half the club.

"I still think Cadmus should play it…" Sena muttered.

"Leave him alone, he said he didn't want to play it." Kodaka said.

"Least _someone's_ listening…" Cadmus said, "You're free to play those games all you want…I'd rather do something else."

"Please…that entire clubroom is basically going to be a complete dead zone…it's going to be quiet, awkward, and dull…and you'll be having to pick up the pieces. I'm looking out for you." She hissed, "If everyone's distracted by watching a noob play one of my games, it'll take the tension off."

He blinked, maybe she had a point after all. Things in the club were awkward and quiet _before_ all these back to back developments. It might be for the best if they were all crowded around the television. "Why not just have Yukimura play it, then? Does it really have to be me when it can be her?"

"Ugh…because she'll just quietly scroll through without reacting at all…you'll be more of a crowd pleaser."

"So you admit that it's my idiocy that'll get their attention?"

Before she could snap something back, the doors to the clubroom were flung open. Reactions were mixed as they all Cadmus once again. Or, not really mixed, everyone looked pleased, while Yozora looked annoyed. But then again, she always looked annoyed or irritated with something. "Ooh, it's Cadmus!" Rika smiled.

Cadmus gave a grin as well, a bit too smug, "It's embarrassing, but I'm back."

Yozora's eyes hardened as she glared at him. She clearly didn't like that, since after all, he parroted the same line she said when she returned to the club after her overly drawn stint away from it.

"Yeah, whatever you say…" Sena patted him forward, "Now I'm going to get your game ready."

"Hmm…game, what does she mean?" Rika asked.

Cadmus sighed as he entered the room with Kodaka and Sena. It still felt incredibly tense entered the room, worse than he imagined. Why was his chair _directly_ next to Yozora's? Well, at least he had Rika on the other side. Time would tell if that would be a good or a bad thing. "Sena finally wore me down enough to the point where I'm giving one of her games a try…"

"How exciting! Rika didn't think you played those types of games, Cadmus!"

"That's because I don't."

Yozora stifled a chuckle, but Cadmus knew better than to hold his breath, because it was likely at his expense, "Well, well, well, so you've finally degraded yourself to giving one of Meat's glorified pornos a try, have you? I feel sorry for you, Scruffy, you must have gotten desperate."

A sinister glint was in his eyes, "Funny how you say that."

A pause.

Kodaka cleared his throat, or else the dragon and the lioness would continue their glare all afternoon, "So how's everyone's day been going?"

"Cadmus, you've missed school for a few days, were you sick?" Yukimura asked quietly from where she normally stood.

"Uh…yeah…something like that…" He rubbed the back of his head, "Didn't feel too great…I'm fine now though…" He said. Half the club probably didn't buy it, but he'd rather them make their own assumptions than actually tell them the _real_ reason as to why he skipped.

"Okay, Cadmus. It's all set." Sena said, jamming a controller in his hands. Cadmus reluctantly took it and adjusted his chair so that he was facing the screen. Most of the other members did the same, probably wanting to enjoy an amateurish sideshow at the very least. He felt the controller in his hands, finding it hard to believe that he'd be reacquainted with it again. The last time he played with it was…

Was when he was gaming with Yozora. When things were simpler. When he _thought_ he stood a damn chance. Now he was left with a horrid taste in his mouth, "Tch…whatever, let's just get this over with…"

"Aw…come on, you can't have an attitude like that when you play the game…" Rika said.

"Yeah, you're gonna have fun!" Sena smiled. He swore, with Rika to his right and Sena to his left backseat playing that this was going to be a nightmare.

"I'll have whatever attitude I want, thank you very much." Cadmus said, about to begin playing.

"Wait! Don't skip the intro!" Sena said, "Cause…cause I mean Yozora skipped the intro, and it's the best part!"

"Fine, then I won't skip the intro…" Cadmus muttered. Even though they got him all hyped up to play this game and got him situated, he _still_ had to sit through a who-knows how long cut scene.

"Rika's so excited…we're going to see what kind of girls Cadmus is into!" She bounced in her seat.

"Okay, by _no_ means will this exemplify what kind of girls I'm into." Cadmus gave Rika an admonishing look, then he faced the screen again, "Game's probably just gonna be full of airheaded bimbos…who all act the same…what's there to get excited about with that?"

Sena clenched her fists, "You take that back! All the characters in this game are one-hundred percent authentic! You'll see!"

"Look, I'll admit it if I'm wrong…but still…seems like a common flaw to these games is how similar all the characters are…"

Unlike the others, Yozora only tilted her chair a fraction of the way towards the screen, while the rest of them all gather behind Cadmus in a sort of movie-viewing formation. Half of her was reading her book, but occasionally her violet eyes would greet the spectacle. "You'd better last more than ten minutes, Scruffy…" She crossed her legs, "Or else this will be even more pitiful than it already is."

"Yeah?" Cadmus asked, "I'll try to make it better than the shit-show you put on. I already know you screwed up during your gameplay session and got a bad end."

Her cheeks went pink, out of embarrassment and anger. She had no idea where he heard that from.

"So basically I just have to not get a bad end and I'll have a better experience than you." He said, Yozora muttered a few death threats under her breath which could faintly be heard.

Once very long intro was over, Cadmus was met with the beginning interface. He slowly began to type his name into the empty blanks.

"Oh, that's right…I forgot that your last name was Vanderbilt…" Sena said, leaning her head on a fist, "Do you have anything to do about that Vanderbilt Conglomerate?"

 _Shit._ "What do you know about that?"

She shrugged, "Daddy talks about it a lot, it has a few branches all over the world, and it's been doing really well in the last few years."

He sighed, "Yeah…my dad works for them."

Sena looked stupefied, " _Works_ for them?" She asked, as a couple surprised gasps echoed throughout the room, "Does he own the company? I mean…I mean…his last name is Vanderbilt…so…so it would make sense if…if he owned…that entire…company…"

"Calm down. He's not the owner." Cadmus's shoulders sunk, "But…the owner is related to me…really, _really_ far up the line…like…great ancestor level…"

"But your father must be high up there, no?" Sena asked, getting paler, "Like…one of the bigwigs?"

"Well…I mean…he's not…he's not _big_ …but…but he does have an executive position…in the branch in Japan at least…" He said, then he turned to Sena's terrified expression, "Your family is still worth more than mine…Sena. You're still the richest person in the room."

"Well, thank heavens."

"Cadmus is a rich boy!" Rika pumped both her fists up, diving at him, "This is a completely welcome addition to his character!"

Cadmus shook her off his arm, "Get off, Rika." He growled, "I'm not significantly richer than any of you…" He said, " _Especially_ not Sena."

It hurt how true the statement was. Sure, his father was on the wealthier side, but he had made it clear that if Cadmus didn't study hard enough to get a position in the company, that he would have no problem cutting him off like a diseased limb.

Which made sense in itself. Cadmus had to work hard to get to high places in life. But he wished the pressure of following in his father's footsteps just wasn't there altogether. He just wished he could get away with being normal.

Oh well, enough of that for now. The game had already made it past the few opening text bubbles. He stared listlessly at the screen, listening to the opening narration. "I don't like my character's voice…"

"It's a step in the right direction from your voice, that's for sure…" Sena muttered.

"Agreed." Rika said.

With every new 'agreed' Cadmus's shoulders sunk lower. "Alright I get it." He frowned.

Nothing really happened for a few minutes, until he quite literally bumped into someone in the hallway at the top of the stairwell.

" _Idiot! Watch where you're going! You trying to hurt someone!"_ A girl on the screen blared in a loud voice. She had long black hair that went down to her back and piercing blue eyes, as well as a typical school uniform.

Cadmus's eyes twitched, "Who the hell is this bitch?"

Kodaka glanced at the back of the game case. He seemed to be the only one who actually cared to help him, "Midori Matsumoto. Seems to be the…hardened character of the group."

"The tsundere." Rika simplified.

"Great…" Cadmus muttered, hammering away at the button to read the text bubbles. Midori kept yelling at him for this and that. Even though his character was supposedly a new student and was lost in the first place. Midori still verbally abused him for being lost. "My character has an axe in this game, right?"

"…this is a dating simulator…and you're a high school student…" Kodaka said.

"Oh…right. Well…I get to pick a choice, right? There a 'push the bitch down the stairs' choice?"

"Cadmus, that's mean!" Rika said, "You can't do that so early in the game."

"I sure can." He said, "If I'm nice to someone who talks to me like _this_ …it sets a bad precedent."

"But this is a dating game…you can't be a delinquent to everyone." Sena said.

"I wouldn't date this one if she was the last woman on earth…"

The game continued for another fifteen minutes before he met another girl. This one was by the entrance of the school, and she looked fairly more mystic than the first one.

"Who's this?" Cadmus asked.

"Aiko Fujioka." Kodaka read, he was about to go on, but Cadmus interrupted.

"I call bullshit…you can't have hair that white…it's unrealistic…she some kinda angel or something?"

"No, Cadmus. This isn't a supernatural game…perfectly normal." Sena said.

"The hell is this game called, anyway?"

"Last hope for the Hoops."

"Huh…interesting choice in title…" He kept playing, unlike the first girl, Midori, this one seemed relatively polite and pleasant to talk to. Or at the very least Cadmus wasn't left ranting at the screen throughout the conversation.

"Ugh…she's acting so fake." Yozora narrowed her eyes at the screen, "No one acts that nice the second they meet you. She wants something out of you."

"Oh, here we go again." Cadmus held his hands out in a grandiose, exaggerated matter, "All the _fake_ , _normal_ people in the world, out to get us."

"Look, just because you're too stupid to—"

"Preach! Sister!" He said, when she didn't respond, he said, "I'll prove it to you now. I'm gonna be just as nice to her as she is to me, and there won't be any problems."

Overall, he preferred Aiko to Midori. Every scene with Midori, he was nothing but annoyed, and tried to pick whatever answer drove her off. And with Aiko, he would do the opposite.

The plot of the game moved on at a rapid pace, as the play through only lasted a few hours. Apparently there was a basketball sports team that was at the risk of getting shut down unless it had a good year.

And guess who two of the most prominent team members were?

"A basketball team about to be shut down?" Sena asked, "Well, now the title makes sense…"

"Jeez…teams so small…it's unisex…" Cadmus muttered.

Cadmus's character joined the team, and he played quite a few basketball themed mini-games to improve his stats, as well academic ones to reflect school stats.

"Ugh, you're so bad at this…your stats suck." Yozora said.

"Tch…I don't care…it reflects the real me." He said, "Besides, if I wanted to play a bunch of stupid academic mini-games, I'd just go to school…"

His academic stats were suffering, but it didn't really impact the gameplay much. It was his athletics that he was worried about. It was directly tied to the plot of the game. While Cadmus was relatively in shape, and had good muscle definition, he didn't typically play many sports. That meant he had to be extra careful with this or he was going to blow it.

He was really bored throughout the game, nothing really stuck out to him. Until he figured out the source of his character's ire.

His father never believed in him and he thought his extra-circular activities were a waste of time. He wanted Cadmus to focus on his academics and nothing else, in order to get into a good college.

Ever since he read that text, he started playing the game with about one-hundred percent more effort, much to the confusion of the Neighbor's Club. Even though the core gameplay of the game was just pressing a single button over and over again.

The plot was beginning to drive up to its climax as well. As their team made it to the finals, Aiko broke down under pressure right before the final game and it was up to Cadmus's character to console her.

" _I…I'm sorry…" Aiko sniffed, "I…I should really get a hold of myself…shouldn't I? It's just…it's just…everything rides on this game…the future of our team…I…I hope I do alright…"_

An idiot could figure out which choice to make when prompted.

 _Cadmus's character hugged her, in what could be seen as the first romantic gesture in the visual novel. "You'll do fine, Aiko, I've always had faith in your abilities. Now let's get out there and win."_

Cadmus's jaw hung agape. It wasn't his voice, or his personality, but the character, the scene, the game, was actually making him quite emotional.

Or it would be making him emotional if it weren't for the club members commenting every five seconds.

"Goodness…Cadmus does have a sensitive side…this is news to Rika…" Rika smiled.

"It's always the densest fools who surprise you the most…" Sena wiped a tear away.

"Christ…I'm just pressing a button, guys…" Cadmus said.

The game was at the end of its rope. Things were winding down once their team won the finals and it was the final scene of the game. That much was obvious with the dramatic new theme song playing. Cadmus's character was in the gymnasium with both girls. The three of them were alone.

"Uh…what the hell is going on?" Cadmus asked, "What's Midori doing here? This is my first game, but I feel like it ends with a smooch or something with my guy and Aiko."

"Hmm…Rika's not sure…maybe it's an oversight development…" Rika said.

"Kinda creepy though, to be honest…" Kodaka said, "What, is he going to just confess in front of both girls…seems a little weird…"

"He better not do that, or I'm gonna be really pissed." Cadmus said.

" _So…the only way for us to move on with this…is if I…" Cadmus's character started, "Were to date both of you at once."_

Cadmus's jaw dropped. There was a silence.

" _What?!"_ Everyone in the club shouted at once.

Cadmus dropped the controller in pure shock, "What the hell just happened?! I…I got the…the…"

"Harem ending." Rika said, "It's when you end up with multiple girls."

He stood up, "What…what the hell? But…but why?" The credits and final scene was rolling, but he was beyond done caring at this point. Apparently the ending was classified as 'good' given the happy, serene music playing, but Cadmus was far from thinking so.

"Rika thinks you were a little too nice to both girls and it backfired, big time…"

"But I kept telling that Midori bitch to screw off! I was nice to Aiko!" He screamed, "I…I wanted Aiko…"

"It…it's just a game…Cadmus…" Yukimura said.

"That's going to be your freaking catchphrase…soon enough…"

Kodaka flipped through a few screens on his phone, "Hmm…"

"What is it?"

"Apparently the game only _has_ one ending in the first place. So…it was bound to happen anyway…"

Cadmus's eyes twitched, so no matter what, he was destined to fail. He grabbed at his hair and pulled it in two different directions, "What did I do to deserve this?!"

* * *

 **A/N:** Ah, the cruel life of a visual novel. Also, I made up that video game too. Thanks for reading!


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** Hello dear readers, it seems I have a bit of a confession to make. I promised a story with Romance/Drama…but I've been neglecting the drama. So…here it is, in all it's glory…

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

"Aw…jeez…can't believe I played that stupid game and that was the result…" Cadmus growled, as everyone slid there chairs back together.

Yozora flipped a page of her book, "Sure was one hell of a show, Scruffy…"

"Come on, Cadmus, you should be happy that you got two girls for the price of one!" Rika said, as her chair scooted a bit closer towards him, "Every guy wants the harem route!"

"Yeah…I'll pass…thanks…" Cadmus muttered, "That was freaking stupid…you…you can't just have one ending…it…it…"

"It's a gross oversight of the game developers?" Kodaka finished.

"Yes, that. Thank you."

"Oh come on…I didn't know how that game ended…it was a while since I played it." Sena said, "I just it'd be basic enough for a first time player…stop dissing it, it wasn't _that_ bad."

Cadmus leaned back in his chair, "Yeah…I guess you have a point…" He said, "Story was nice…characters were good…the ending just sucked…I wanted Aiko, alone. Not that stupid bitch Midori."

"So Cadmus likes the busty blondes. Hmm, duly noted." Rika smiled.

Cadmus turned pink, and his eye twitched. Aiko's hair was a very nice, white as the snow, and her figure was presented in the game better than Midori's. But he honestly went for Aiko because she was pleasant to be around. "Rika…" He leaned towards her menacingly, "What did I tell you about the game not reflecting who I'm into at all?"

Rika showed no signs of faltering due to his stature or his glare, "There's no shame in it, Cadmus. Now Rika knows who you like." She poked his nose.

He snarled, "That's not how it's like at all!" He snapped, "It isn't that literal, I was just playing a game for you guys! I was trying to make it interesting!"

Sena crossed her arms, "I thought you would go after Midori, honestly…you know…because she's like—"

She stopped herself short, "Never mind."

Cadmus swallowed hard. _Really Sena? How could you be so stupid, just keep your damn mouth shut!_ He thought frantically, hoping that no one would take the bait.

"Like who?" Yukimura asked slowly.

Damn it. "Uh…uh…no one, no one, don't know what she's talking about, really…"

Rika narrowed her eyes, a small smile forming on her face as she looked from Cadmus to Yozora, "Rika thinks she sees it now."

"What? No…no Rika…that's not…damn it…" His cheeks went pink again, "You're oversimplifying it…"

"Rika doesn't think so. All those times you were worried sick when she was absent. All those times you kept asking about her, that you were by her side." She leaned her head on her fist, almost looking bored because this meant that Cadmus had set his sights on someone in the club.

Yukimura gasped, "Cadmus has a crush on Yozora?"

Kodaka and Sena exchanged a nervous glance.

Pink turned to red, "No…no…you're…you're wrong…"

Yozora slammed her book shut, "That's enough." She brooded, her eyes now laser-focused on Cadmus, "Just how far did your embarrassing secret end up going Scruffy?"

He felt as if he could accurately say how a caged animal felt now. With all the stares on him. The confused, judgmental looks. Fear and anger were being juggled around inside him at incomprehensible speeds. Yozora's glare was met with an even glare from Cadmus, " _My_ embarrassing secret?" He asked, "Again…funny you should say that."

"Look, you hitting on me is one thing…but broadcasting it to the entire club, that's low."

"Hitting on you?" He snapped, "I was confessing you damn idiot. I didn't even get to decide when I got to do it because it sprung out in front of me. It's not my fault you walked in a conversation you had no business hearing."

"Still, if you tried at least a little…this wouldn't be out in the open like this."

"Pfft, my feelings for can't just be brushed under the rug like that. Whether I want them or not, they're there. And I can't control who hears what, and how it's spread. You really think I wanted water balloons to know anything about any of this?"

"Hey!" Sena frowned.

"Quiet, Meat." Yozora said, focusing her anger back on Cadmus, "Whatever you feel, you need to get over it. You need to move on with your life and just fall in love with someone else already. I don't care who, just get out of my life."

There was a silence. A cold one.

It was broken by laughter. The way he was laughing, it sounded like he was either the villain of a movie, or that he'd lost his mind, "Man, you're really funny, you know that?" Cadmus grinned.

Yozora narrowed her eyes. Cadmus glared back, their looks suggesting that this just started.

He leaned back in his chair, looking at the ceiling, "Yeah…you're right Yozora…I should go about it like you, huh? Asking out Kodaka while he's involved with someone? Masturbating to him in his bathroom? The classy way, right?"

A few gasps. Yozora clenched her fists, "Scruffy!"

"The plot thickens…" Rika said quietly.

"Is…is that true?" Yukimura looked at Kodaka.

Kodaka gave a small nod, blushing just about as much as Yozora and Cadmus were. "Yes."

"Jeez…Kodaka…you've seen _Yozora_ naked too?" Rika asked, "Have you seen every girl in the club naked at this point?"

Yozora shuddered under the stares. They were either looking at her for what she did, Kodaka for apparently seeing so many of them naked, or Cadmus for disposing the information so cheaply in the first place. "So what?" Yozora screamed, "Who cares that I masturbated? Everyone does it, I've already hit rock bottom…so…so I'll just be the masturbator too that."

"Jesus Christ…" Cadmus buried his face in his hand.

"You saw Yukimura naked in that locker room…you've definitely seen Rika naked…you've seen Yozora naked now, and you've seen Sena naked at her house…" Rika listed, "Is there no end to your terror, Kodaka?"

"Yeah, that's right." Yozora smiled, "Call me as disgusting and perverted as you want, but Kodaka's always a-thousand times worse."

Cadmus felt a vein or two crop up on his forehead. He stood up, with such force that the chair was in completely fell back, "Shut up, Rika!" He shouted, "Leave the poor man alone, that's not the point to any of this!"

"Then what is the point to any of this?" Sena asked, "You need to calm down, before someone ends up saying something they regret."

"You wanted this to happen." Cadmus seethed through clenched teeth.

Sena looked a little unnerved at his rising temper, "Yes…but…but not like _this_ …"

"Like what?" Yozora looked from Sena to Cadmus, "What? You two working together or something?"

"You wanna know the point of this?" He looked at Yozora, "Funny how you ask that."

"Swear to god, Scruffy…you say that one more time, and I'll start ripping things out of you."

He snickered madly, her threats in one ear and out the other, "What's the point of this club?" A rhetorical pause, "To make friends. The Neighbor's Club." A grin crept onto his face, "But you guys wanna know what our _esteemed_ President really made it for? What purpose it really serves?"

"Scruffy, don't—"

"It isn't a Neighbor's Club. It's a get royally fucked by Kodaka club!" He spat, "That's right, Yozora really made this club to get with him, and once other members joined, she completely lost interest, to the point now where she doesn't even care anymore because her shining knight is with Sena! Everything she's done up to this point has backfired horribly for her!"

It was either the realization itself or the fact that Cadmus was gazing around, announcing like some demented preacher that made them all unnerved.

"This…this club is fake?" Yukimura sniffed.

"Rika…Rika didn't think…" Rika said.

"That…that can't be possible…" Sena said.

"I didn't even know that…" Kodaka said quietly.

"It might be official and all that crap…but it was founded on principles of lust. This whole thing is a lie." Cadmus said.

With tears in her eyes, Yozora rose from her seat, grabbing her things and starting to walk off. Cadmus thought he was going to get clobbered, but Yozora instead headed for the exit, in record time.

His eyes darted to the door, and he began to head out as well. "Where do you think you're going?" Sena snapped, hands on her hips.

Cadmus looked back, then ahead, "I gotta find her." He said, "Or else this is gonna start all over again."

"If you just kept your mouth shut—"

"Don't you dare act like any of this is my fault!" He frowned, "How is any newcomer supposed to react to any of this? This overhaul was a long time coming, and it starts with your President." He left, "Don't follow me."

* * *

If this really was starting over from the beginning, then Yozora would only be in one place. The place he found her when he first met her and joined the club. That busy highway, near the guardrail.

The sun was beyond starting to set as he headed out there by foot. He'd make it there soon. But what would he even say to her?

He was angry, so angry. She still had Kodaka on her mind, she was still lusting after him, her heart still wanted him. He used to mock her, but was he any better? He was motivated by a jealous rage and he most likely nearly destroyed the Neighbor's Club.

But multiple members in the club thought change was inevitable anyway, even if Cadmus didn't join. And right now, it hinged on Yozora. She was bringing everyone in the club down with her, and now Cadmus was going to give her a piece of his mind. No more holding back. No more backing down.

"Tch. Thought I'd find you up here, Yozora." Cadmus said, approaching the guardrail. He had to admit, the night sky, the once busy highway now stale, the sea ahead. It was a nostalgic view, and yet also a cruel reminder at how much time has changed, and yet things have stayed the same. "This is your territory, isn't it? Did you piss in a bush or two to mark it?"

"Ugh, you are so disgusting." Yozora frowned, her eyes red from prior crying.

"Least I don't masturbate in other people's bathrooms."

A dirty grin went across her face, "Does that bother you so much, Scruffy? Come on, don't act so above it. You've probably done it to the person you like to."

"You mean you? Yeah, I don't think so." Cadmus said, "A person can be as alluring as they want, but it's what's on the inside that matters." He said, "I thought me playing that game made that clear."

"Yes, preach, brother…"

He snarled when she used his own taunt against him. He held his hands out, "Just…just what is this phobia of social interactions? Where did it come from? There's no way a person can be _this_ much of a basket case! You refuse to accept people because they're 'normal' and 'fake.' You're hell bent on getting with a guy who's already spoken for, and you're verbally abusive to literally anyone else other than said crush. Do you really think you're gonna turn anything around like this?"

"Everything was going fine until you came along."

"Oh, this should be rich."

"They didn't have to know that, Scruffy…why the club was _really_ made. Everything was going along just fine, until you revealed that ugly truth. Now the club probably won't even be able to function. You happy now? You just destroyed a perfectly peaceful club."

He hesitated, her words stung, as they were true. Some of them. "You really have room to lecture _me_ about being honest? Being trustworthy? Hell, wasn't it you who plagiarized an entire movie script, or am I just imagining that?"

"Tch…I didn't think any of those idiots would notice…it would have been fine."

He clenched his fists, his face turning red, this time with rage, "What the hell is wrong with you?! So if no one notices, it's fine?! Never mind that…that's what you think of the other members? Seriously? You think that little of them?" He panted after his rant. There was a silence after she didn't respond, so he went on, "Oh…but…silly me. I forgot why the club was _really_ made for, huh? So I guess none of those other members matter, do they? It's all about Kodaka, isn't it? If you could get away with murder, you'd kill every other girl on the planet just to be with him. And don't even get me started on dear old Sena."

She looked at the ground, "You wouldn't understand, Scruffy…"

"You still haven't answered my question. The most basic one."

"…what?"

"Why Kodaka would ever want to be seen with a bitch like you."

Her eye twitched, she glowered at him with a fury he hadn't seen in a while. Cadmus vastly underestimated the distance between them. He was only about a yard or two away from her. She could easily close the distance and give him another bloody nose. Hell, the moon was even in the same phase now as it was on that day, crescent shaped. More nostalgia. "Oh, so I'm a bitch now, am I?" She asked lowly, "Cause I won't go out with you, right? How nice, Scruffy. What a way to treat a woman who turns you down."

"That's not what this is about." Cadmus said, "This is about Kodaka." He rested his hands in his pockets, "You'd think you'd just treat him like a normal human being, and none of this would have happened. If you treated him with respect, if you treated him straightforwardly. If you treated the other members fairly and honestly. But no, instead of boosting your own image, you wanted to destroy everyone around you. Until now you're all alone."

"Scruffy, that doesn't—"

"Don't you dare lie to me!" He roared, "Kodaka told me everything! You recognized him immediately, but since your hair was so long, he didn't recognize you! You could have solved all these problems just by saying 'hi' and clearing the air with him." His gaze darkened, "You know, I doubt he even recognizes you compared to Sora, the childhood friend he had, am I right?" He asked.

A fist went back, aimed right for his face.

But this time Cadmus caught the blow. The breeze stopped, all was silent.

His eyes boiled with rage, he gently flicked her fist away, "Beat the shit outta me all you want! It isn't gonna solve any of your problems!"

She kept punching him, he raised an arm to block them, grunting. Luckily his jackets were so thick, it was cushioning some of the impact. "You told me all this yourself, Yozora!" He screamed over her, "You told me all this yourself! That you yourself were pushing him away! That your jealousy and your rage betrayed you and pushed him into the arms of someone else!" He growled, taking a step or two back, "You're not entitled to have Kodaka! He's a man, he's a human being with thoughts and opinions all his own! And just because you have a thing for him, does not make any of this okay! He's in love with Sena, and you have to get over it and give it a rest!"

His argument stopped her beating at least. "Alright…I get it…" She sniffed, but Cadmus knew better. They weren't tears of sadness, they were tears of rage, "I get it, alright! I'm just a stupid pile of waste and I lost my only chance at ever getting involved with Kodaka! Hell, I've lost my chances of being friends with him too, didn't I?" She sniffed, her entire body shaking, "I don't regret a single thing of it…not a damn thing…I…I did what I could, in the end. If…if he wants to settle with stupid Meat's side, that's fine by me! I'm done, I'm done with all of this!"

He blinked, she wasn't going to take this gracefully at all, was she? He sighed, he just wanted to knock some sense into her, not see her like this. She was self-conscious about herself before. "I feel sorry for you, then…" He said quietly.

"What about you…hmm…Scruffy…?" Yozora raged, "You have to answer for what you've done…you have to answer for the disruptions you've caused in the Neighbor's Club…all just to get my attention." She laughed darkly, it resembling a mix of laughter and crying, "Cause…cause if I have to go down like this…if I have to suffer like this…then I'm taking you down with me!"

"Joke's on you." Cadmus said, his tone was still quiet. Their voices were night and day right now, in terms of volume, "Cause I quit."

"What…you…you what?"

"I quit your stupid club." He spat, "Got it? I'm a punk, a delinquent, I got nothing there, and I got nobody waiting for me." He turned away from her, "I'm a loner, always have been, always will be. I've…I've already made too many bad impressions at the club…it's like you said. It's better off if…if I'm just gone…I stirred the pot too much…"

Yozora brushed her tears away, "If that's how you feel, Scruffy…then I won't stop you."

"Good." He said, "I don't…I don't belong anywhere…" He started walking away, "I quit the Neighbor's Club!"

Aside from the occasional car that passed by, all Cadmus heard were his footsteps in the dirty, gravelly ground near the road as he ventured home. He heard a voice calling for him. It had to Yozora's, but he had no idea what she was saying. He was too far away from her by now to make anything else.

He didn't look back, it would cause him too much pain. The woman he loved was back there, and he was leaving her, leaving her world, to go back to nothing but school every day. Nothing but boring life and his father's expectations. Tears flowed from his eyes, he couldn't reply. Whatever she was calling him for, if it was even towards him, he wouldn't reply. He would carry on in this world as his father wanted him to. An empty shell, who worked and worked, waiting for death.

* * *

 **A/N:** Cadmus…you can't quit the Neighbor's Club…all the plot is there…will Cadmus and Yozora get over their stubborn grievances? Find out in the next chapter!


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** Here's chapter fifteen! Let's see how Cadmus functions without his friends in the Neighbor's Club guiding and supporting him. Not well.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

Without the Neighbor's Club, all Cadmus did was sit through his classes, barely paying attention. He was poor enough at school _before_ all this happened, and now he just had all these extra distractions lingering around.

One of the biggest things he worried about was what Yozora was trying to tell him when he was stubbornly walking away.

He snarled quietly at himself. _I'm such an idiot!_ He finally joined a club, made new friends, even got romantically interested in someone. And for what? What does he have to show for it? The club might even be broken up. How did he like that? The very club he joined, was destroyed by his own two hands, and the members scattered about back into their awkward lives at school, just like him. He deserved to suffer.

Evidently, there was a break period, as the other students in his class lulled about or made chatter.

"Damn…Kashiwazaki made first place again with the final test scores…" One of the guys nearby him said.

"Course she did, she always does." Another student said, "Doesn't the same person always make second place too?"

Cadmus watched the kids around him speak with a tired, bored expression on his face, most of them were other guys. His expression perked up when he heard, "Yeah, Mikazuki…Yozora…right? That's her first name, right?" A third guy said.

"Isn't she that really anti-social chick with the long dark hair?" The first guy asked.

"Nah, nah, man, its short now. She cut it short, kinda looks like it was a cheap haircut." The second student said.

"Man…I bet she's into really weird things…they say that all the time, ya know, 'beware the quiet ones'?"

"Who we talking about?" A fourth student asked.

"This Kinky smart girl who's in another class…I mean, Kashiwazaki's one thing…but…I wouldn't mind letting her do to me whatever she'd wanted."

"I'd tap that." A fifth student said, "Definitely."

"She's probably got a dirty mind, what with all the reading."

Cadmus cleared his throat, causing the six or seven other students to glare at him. This was not their smartest move, as he glared right back, "Meet me after class."

In the midafternoon, when school ended, Cadmus and the other kids met in an alleyway. "The hell you want, Vanderbilt?" One of them taunted, "Does your mommy not let you watch porn? Give us a break."

Cadmus smiled as his eyes focused on his seven targets, "I think it's time you swine learn a lesson." He said.

They all laughed at him.

"Oh please, we weren't actually going to _do_ nothing." One of them said.

"Grow up, Vanderbilt, why would we even bother with some dork like her?"

He cracked his knuckles, his grin growing, "Still…even _joking_ about that kinda stuff pisses me off…maybe your blood all over the asphalt will make me feel a little better."

The seven kids all exchanged a glance. Sure, Cadmus was most likely the dumbest kid in their class, but he wasn't the weakest. Far from it. "What the hell, man…it's just a joke! What the hell are you, her guard dog or something?"

A vein popped up on his forehead, "Well then let's see if your words can be backed up by your actions!" He roared, rearing his fist back and punching the nearest kid in the face. A satisfying crack was heard, as the student nearly lost consciousness from that attack alone.

"Get him!" One of the guys growled, and they all rushed him.

He snickered madly, laughing like a jackal as he distanced himself to take them one at a time. His outer trench coat flapped in the wind as he jumped back and took out another one. School fights, another day, another dollar for Cadmus. This was basically how he spent his time here at St. Chronica's, and it seemed nothing had changed. Fists were flying, mild amounts of blood were getting sprayed everywhere, decorating his pitch black jacket. Though hardly any of it was his. In less than ten minutes, he knocked out half of them.

"Come on, perverts! That all you got!" He growled, "I'll send you straight to hell!"

A surge of pain went up his right arm, as he blocked a few blows from his opponents. It dazed him a bit, leaving him vulnerable. One student growled and decked him straight in the face. He grunted and stumbled back, hitting the brick wall behind him.

His right arm. That was the one that Yozora kept hitting on that night. Now it all made sense. He grimaced and held his arm, then his face.

He held a finger under his nose. No blood? Pathetic, these kids were no Yozora, he would come out on top of this yet.

He grimaced as he knocked another kid out flat with a punch from his right arm. Soon he'd have a completely dead arm to content with. He'd have to punch with his left arm for the remainder of the fight.

The last student thought he could do a sneak attack, but Cadmus lashed a leg out, sweeping him and giving him one final punch to the face.

When it got quiet, he looked around. His former opponents were on the ground, either out cold, or moaning in pain. Some of them were slowly getting up. Cadmus looked at the blood on his hands. "Shit…" He fled the scene.

* * *

Playing music was a great creative outlet, and perhaps even a good way to reduce stress.

Or lessen guilt.

He often did this. To the point where the garage was more of his room than his actual room was. It was more suited for his guitar, microphone, and amps than anything vehicle related. His guitar screeched its chords as he screamed into the microphone. This was the real Cadmus after all, playing gothic music, beating people up who annoyed him, and just barely hanging on in school. No attachments, no friendships, no regrets.

Because what was a better way to forget about the day than singing death metal?

And this was the legitimate theme, given how he was roaring the self-made lyrics. It was a complete departure from the tamer rock song he sang in the karaoke booth with the club quite a while ago. This was a deep, roaring rumble that was likely heard from quite a distance away. It was completely savage compared to when he normally sang.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." By some miracle, he heard a voice. This caused him to stop playing entirely. "You can't just go around screaming like that." She said, "No wonder why your voice sounds the way it does, you can't keep putting that much strain on it."

Cadmus blinked a few times. He unplugged his soild black guitar from the amp, putting it on its stand. He simple couldn't believe the person who was standing in front of him right now. "Yozora…what the hell are you doing here?"

Yozora made a face, "I, as well as most of the other neighborhood, could hear your _tasteful_ music from down the street. You should consider yourself lucky it was me rather than a noise complaints…or the cops summoned by said noise complaint."

It was then he remembered that they didn't live too far away from one another. He swallowed hard, but he didn't care about his music right now. She was, she was here, in the garage with him. He felt his eyes get glossy, but he rubbed them. No, no, he was not crying in front of her. "What…what do you want? What are you doing here?" He asked, bombarding her with questions, "I quit the Neighbor's Club, remember? I'm…I'm not a part of you guys, anymore…so…so…so I don't know why you're here…"

She looked at the ground briefly, then back into his eyes, "Not many people are, Scruffy…it's hardly a club anymore…not after what happened…"

How could she say all that stuff with a straight face? Where did she get her strength from? How was she so strong? It was taking everything for him to muster up a stern tone. He felt all his emotions wanting to slip out his throat every time he opened his mouth. "Oh…so that's it? You came here to guilt-trap me? Make me feel bad about destroying your club? Is that it?"

Her eyes darted around, they settled on the floor again, "No…I…uh…a…a lot of things were said the other night…between us…"

A slow nod, "They were."

She took a step or two forward. Damn it, her purple eyes were so pretty, "Did…did something happen to you?"

"Huh?"

"Your face."

He instinctively felt the handful of bruises on his face, "Huh? What…oh, this?" He pointed to one, "Uh…there might have been a fight…that I was behind…"

She looked surprised, "That alleyway brawl? With like…eight people…that was you?"

"It spread that quickly?" He blinked, "Yeah…that was me…what gives? I'm in fights all the time…"

"I…I didn't think that meant fights to _this_ scale…jeez…" She said, "I heard it was one against seven, and all seven guys were knocked out, how are you not suspended?"

"I don't think you know how proud, thick-headed men work." He said, "None of those guys are gonna tattle on me for a small scrap. It wasn't serious, they'll be fine, I only knocked 'em out." He said, thinking about how that all sounded, "And…if I'm wrong…if I get suspended, I get suspended…" He shrugged.

"Ugh…" She put a hand on her forehead, "Why did you even fight them in the first place?"

"Cause they were pissing me off." He muttered, "I may be a bonehead…but they're like…drooling cavemen…"

"I can't believe you sometimes…didn't getting punched around by seven people hurt at all?"

"Eh…your punches hurt way more than anything they could do." He pulled down his right sleeve to verify. Three ugly black and blue bruises were on his arm.

Her cheeks went pink, "Oh…right…that was me."

"Really got me good."

"Shut up, what…you want me to apologize or something? You were being a jerk!"

"You were being a real princess, yourself there Yozora."

A pause, "I know."

He leaned his head forward a little, extending a hand to his ear, "Huh?" He asked, "You must be Yozora's stunt double or something. Yozora never acknowledges her faults in such a mature way…"

"Scruffy…I will end you…" She clenched her fists.

"So what the hell are you doing here?" He snapped.

She was surprised at how back and forth his comments were. "I wanted to talk about the Neighbor's Club with you. But…then you got in a fight…and then I heard you screaming your heavy metal, so it reminded me of you. Damn…probably gave chills to everyone in the block."

He rolled his eyes. "It's a selective genre." He said. The only person who was as critical as Yozora was about his soul screaming was his father.

"I swear, that's not remotely healthy."

"I usually drink a nice honey tea afterwards, settle down, I won't die." He said, then he grinned, "Though I have to say, it's nice to see you worry about me. It's a rare treat."

She turned red, "Scruffy!"

"So the Neighbor's Club."

She grabbed a piece of her hair, twirling it around endlessly, "So…so yeah…I…I think…you should consider rejoining…"

And her playing with her hair was so cute too! It meant she was thinking!

Wait, wait, wait, back up there. Rejoin?

He raised a brow, "I thought the club exploded or whatever…is there anything even left to join?"

She crossed her arms, "I want to at least try and restore the club to its former glory…and…and I think you could help with that."

"Maybe." He said. He wasn't trying to be difficult for the sake of being difficult, he was worried that she was severely overestimating his abilities.

"Cause I mean like…I'm not too worried about Kodaka and Meat…they'll be fine, if either of us asks them…Sumeragi should be fine too…even Maria…I doubt she even gets what happened…she wasn't even there when shit hit the fan…"

He nodded, she made some good points. Kobato would do whatever her brother did, and Maria was only ten.

"So that leaves Rika and Yukimura."

"Right." Yozora said, "If we're going to put the club back together, we need them too."

"Got it." Cadmus said, "So you want me to talk to both of 'em…or…?"

"You handle Yukimura, I'll talk to Rika." She said, "I think I get along with Rika a little better than you do."

"That's cause you're a girl."

She rolled her eyes, "If for whatever reason, we run into any problems, we'll switch places. Sound good, Scruffy?"

He nodded. Overall, he felt very pleased with this conversation, he missed talking with Yozora like this. "Sounds good."

She smiled, "Glad to hear it." She said, "We'll start tomorrow." She turned to walk away.

"Hey…Yozora…" Cadmus said, she stopped, "I…I'm sorry…"

She stopped, "Scruffy…"

"It…it's my fault…it's all my fault. All this…all this crap we're doing right now…its cause of me…isn't it?" He sniffed. _Damn it. Don't cry in front of Yozora, don't you dare._

She turned around, "Not _all_ of it." She said, "I was a big part of it too. All of us had a piece of drama…it just…it just all came out at once…and you made the most noise about it…that's all…"

"Damn it…" He took a step or two back, falling back in the one folded out chair in the garage. "Why didn't I just keep my mouth shut?" He sniffed, "Why did I have to go and say all that? I…I want you to know that I'm sorry…about all the stuff I said to you…I…I shouldn't have said it…it…it was wrong of me…"

"It's okay, Scruffy…you…you were sort of right anyway…I…I did make the club for Kodaka…"

"But…but you made it so that you could share a bond with him. Reform what happened all those years ago…in the days of Sora and Taka. You had a pure-hearted, wholesome idea, a desire." He waved a hand out in disgust at himself, "I went and turned it into making it sound like you were a giant pervert and wanted to get in bed with him."

"But you _should_ …" His shoulders sunk, "I…I made you sound like a…a…don't you care? About what they're going to think?"

"A person's image can only go so far."

He blinked at her words, maybe she was right. Maybe she was genius, to let run their thoughts bounce off of her and continue on, regardless of their opinions. Maybe he could learn a thing or two from her.

"If you want me to accept your apology or whatever, then…fine…whatever, I'll do it. But I honestly don't think either of us needs to waste time doing that. I think we need to concern ourselves with the future, and moving forward."

He blinked, tears all over his face at this point, "But…but what about us?" He asked, "I asked you out…things got awkward…where…where do we go from that? What…what can we do? Can we…can we at least be friends? Please?"

She twirled her hair for a bit, but then stopped, as a small smile formed onto her face, "I'd like that."

"Good…I…I'm glad."

"Will you stop crying now, Scruffy?"

"Yeah…yeah…sorry…" He brushed his tears away, standing up.

The door nearby him creaked open, and his mother peeked in. Most likely wondering why there was so much chatter in the garage rather than droning music. She smiled when she spotted Yozora, "Everything okay in here?" She asked.

Cadmus jolted, "Hey mom…" He said, "Thought…thought I made it pretty clear…that…that you had to knock…before coming in…"

"Sorry, I just couldn't resist." She smiled, eyeing Yozora again, "She a friend of yours?"

He blushed, "Uh…well…you see…it's a little…it's a little bit. Yes…yes, she's a friend…Yozora…my…my friend…"

"Hi." Yozora gave a small wave.

Cadmus didn't like how amused his mother's smile was at this particular moment, "Sorry if I interrupted anything." She retreated back to the house.

He took a deep sigh of relief, rubbing the back of his head as he whirled back towards Yozora, "Uh…sorry about my mom…she's…she can be…very affectionate and friendly…sometimes…"

"That's okay, she seemed nice."

He smiled, "See you tomorrow, Yozora."

"Later, Scruffy."

The next day, school went on as normal, only Cadmus had trouble finding any members of the Neighbor's Club. He didn't like turning up empty handed, and worse still, when he got into the clubroom, it was just himself and Yozora.

"Aw…what the hell?" He asked, "Why is it only the two of us?"

She thought about it, "I guess it's going to be harder than we thought…getting everyone back here…don't worry…I'll handle Kodaka and Meat…and Maria too…see if you can focus on Yukimura, or…Rika…if I can't end up finding her. Are you in a class with either of them?"

Cadmus half-wilted. Weren't Rika and Yukimura a year under them? "If they were in my class…we wouldn't be having any of these problems right now…would we?"

"Oh…yeah, right…I forgot about that." She said, "We'll also need some kind of event to entice them about our solidarity. We'll keep in touch and see what we can plan."

"Yes, Madame President." He said, this earned him a look and a blush, but to him it was well worth it.

Worth it, because there was a regularity once again. Sure, they had to reunite every member of the Neighbor's Club again, but he got to be working alongside with Yozora while doing it. If it was this Yozora, he would love to anything with her, even if it was only as friends. It wasn't going to be easy hunting everyone down. But this was child's play compared to what's been going on recently.

"So…if we're gonna be here for an hour or two…did you uh…" He started, "Did you wanna play…wanna play Battle Royale: Unlimited Warriors?"

She smiled, "You mean steal Meat's games and play them behind her back, I'd love to." She said. And that's how the two of them concluded their afternoon.

* * *

 **A/N:** Wow, they're getting along. Never thought I'd see the day. Thanks for reading!


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** Here's chapter sixteen! Last Haganai chapter before I take a break for a little while! I hope you all enjoy!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Haganai

* * *

The innocent whistling was masking his true goal, the nature of his true objective. Every time there was a break period during class, Cadmus would scour the hallways, looking around for Yukimura. Though she was a grade younger than him, he still had no idea what specific class she was in or anything.

Yozora had assured him that she would locate and pull in everybody else. How hard could it be to find one person?

Luck would have it that he spotted her once school finished. But she was way ahead of him, rounding a corner. Wait, was she going up the stairs? Why? School was out, shouldn't she be leaving the building?

"Hey, Yukimura! Wait!" Cadmus called, rounding the corner as well. Though he was stopped cold when he bumped into someone. He and the person he ran into both fell on their rears.

"Ow…ow…ow…" A voice said, as a girl got up, "Watch where you're going, will you?" It was a tiny and annoying voice, not one that Cadmus really recognized.

Cadmus grunted as he got up, dusting the back of his pants off, "Yeah, yeah, whatever…sorry…now will you move?" He snarled. He had lost Yukimura at this point.

"Ugh, rude much?" The little girl snapped. Over her green and white school uniform was a brown cardigan, and she sported red neck length hair and amber eyes. She backed away a bit in fear once she registered who the other person was, "What the hell? Are you some kind of burglar, what are you doing here?"

She must have been talking about his clothes, "No…" He sighed, "I go to this school…"

"You look like a creep!"

"And you look like a third grader."

"How dare you!" She waved a tiny fist in the air, "I'll have you know, it's against school regulations to go around dressed like…like some punk! As a member of the Student Council, I'd like to have your name, please!"

Cadmus felt his heart leap up to his throat. "This bitch is part of the Student Council…?" He asked himself, then he addressed her, holding up his hands in a fearful, friendly gesture, "Come on, now…officer…I don't mean to offend…"

"Whatever, your name?"

"It's after school anyway! Classes are over, I can wear whatever the hell I want!"

"You're still on school ground!" She protested.

"Like hell, I'd be gone by now if I didn't have to stand here arguing with you!"

She held a hand out, "Why don't you come with me to our office, then? For both dressing outside the dress code _and_ resisting the admonishment of a council member?"

"Yusa-Yusa?" Cadmus heard Yukimura's voice, as she peeked around the corner and joined their little standoff.

"Yukimura!" The little redhead beamed. Maybe Cadmus was saved after all.

Cadmus dumbly looked from Yukimura to the short redhead, "You two know each other?"

"You almost missed it." The petite girl smiled as she gestured to Cadmus, "I was about to punish this _degenerate_."

"Cadmus?" Yukimura just noticed him.

"You know him?" The other girl asked.

"That's right." Cadmus crossed his arms, "Call off your Chihuahua, Yukimura, I want a talk in private."

"Ugh, the nerve! That's Aoi Yusa, to you!" The redhead snapped.

"Yeah, yeah, Aoi Yusa…blah, blah, blah…get lost…"

Aoi muttered something under her breath as she marched off, presumably back to the office of the Student Council. Cadmus then looked at Yukimura, "What the hell are you doing, getting so chummy with the Student Council members?"

She frowned, "I've visited them for a while now. There's no need to be so hostile to them."

"They probably all hate me anyway…besides…I just feel…bad vibes…between our club and theirs…you know?" Cadmus asked, "Like there's some kinda animosity between the Neighbor's Club and the Student Council."

"There is. The Student Council tried to shut the Neighbor's Club down twice."

 _Shit._ He thought. He would need a serious conversation with either Yozora or someone else who was privy to the club's history later. But for now, he crossed his arms, "About our club."

"Yes?" She asked.

He didn't think he'd get this far. Where should he begin? Probably by telling her how much of an idiot he was. "Uh…well, we're not disbanded. We're still running."

"We are?" She asked, "But…I doubt Yozora is in any state to—"

"She's fine now. Most of us are fine…it's…it's just a matter of spreading the word out…getting everything back together…"

"But…she's in such a dark place right now…"

"She's fine. Don't question it. I think if we keep running the club as we have been, it'll heal old wounds, what do you say?"

Her eyes shifted around, "But you said that—"

"Forget about what I said." He interrupted yet again. "I…uh…she just wanted to be Kodaka's friend again…maybe she did want to be something more with him…but…but I think…finally…that she's willing to put things in the past."

"So…you exaggerated…"

"Guilty…" He said, "People do lots of crazy things for love."

She thought about it, "I suppose the foundation of a club doesn't really matter…it's how the time is spent…and the memories made from it."

"Yeah, see? That's the right kind of attitude."

They stared at each other for another few moments, "I'll give it some thought."

"Right, thanks Yukimura, you won't regret this." He gave a small bow, and the two went their separate ways.

A metal song blared from his phone. But the song was different that his typical texting song. He picked it up and held it to his ear. He was pretty sure he still only had one contact at this point. "Yozora? You never call me…"

"Scruffy, yeah, hi…how are you doing?"

"I just talked to Yukimura, got a hard 'maybe.' But I'm willing to bet that she'll be in during our next meeting. What about you?"

"I got everybody except Rika. Meat and Kodaka just ditched us for a date or whatever…they weren't actually quitting the club…Maria and Sumeragi didn't even notice that there was a problem…so they were fine too."

"Yeah…I'm starting to think when I said that I destroyed the club that I was exaggerating a little bit…"

"Crap like this happens all the time…it's still nice to touch base with everyone and see how they're feeling."

"Fair point." He said, "So you missed Rika?"

"Yeah, I'm betting she's in her Rika room…giving herself some self-love."

His cheeks went pink, "I don't even wanna ask."

"I'm gonna send you in. I wasted too much time looking for her and I have other things to do."

"Aw, come on…I don't wanna go in Rika's secret sex dungeon!" He yelled into the phone, "Damn it, why is it always me?"

"This is it Scruffy, it's just Rika and then we're done."

"Pfft, says the person who _doesn't_ have to go in her Rika room…which doesn't sound creepy at all."

"I'll pray for your safety."

"That's not funny!" He growled, "Ugh…besides…what the event we're going to do to signify our unity of a club? Have you given that any thought?"

"Uh…I don't know…maybe the beach again? Meat has that house, right? I bought this new book I've been dying to read."

"Hmm…fair enough…enough though we went to the beach last time, you weren't there. Sounds like a reasonable idea."

"See you later, Scruffy." She hung up.

"Ah! Wait! Yozora! Don't go…I don't wanna go to…" He angrily sighed as he pocketed his phone.

He looked around this 'Rika room' that Yozora had designated for him. One lab after another left him with no results. He eventually found a smaller lab, maybe this one was the one that belonged to Rika? He looked around for belongings that could have maybe been owned by Rika, but he didn't come up with anything.

One door after another he stumbled through, sure was a convoluted, tightly-knit lab, that was for sure.

The last door he barged through was an office, and he found Rika, on the floor, in nothing but her lab coat.

He cheeks lit up and he backed away, but Rika already heard him. She turned around with a big smile on her face, as if being discovered like this was perfectly normal. "Cadmus." He grin grew.

"Damn it, Rika!" He closed his eyes and cowered, "Put your clothes on, for Christ's sake!"

"Wrong, wrong, wrong." Rika said, "You're supposed to ask Rika if she needed any help finishing off!"

"…never in a million years would I help you finish off…"

He opened his eyes, Rika was sitting in her swiveling chair. Her lab coat was all buttoned up, which he appreciated. But knowing that absolutely nothing was under it didn't do him many favors. "Rika thinks you need to work on your sexual etiquette, if that's the case."

"Uh-huh…yeah, sure I do. I don't even wanna know who that was for…"

"Take a guess."

"I really don't want to."

A pause, "You and Kodaka doing it, if you were wondering."

Repulsed, he took another step back, "Gross…Rika…" He said, "Damn it…I can't believe I'm stuck with you…"

"Oh? But if it were Yozora…would you help her finish off?" She grinned, running a hand through her brunette hair.

"…no…shut up…"

"You would!" She clasped her hands together, "Rika bets you would do many deeds with her, wouldn't you?"

He raised a fist up, flustered, "That doesn't matter…leave her out of this!"

"You would fist her?"

He looked at his hands, "Stop it!" He snapped.

She giggled, "How long have you had a thing for Yozora?"

"I…I don't know…a while…I don't remember when. Wait, why am I telling you all this?"

"You know, just because she's trying to let go of Kodaka, doesn't mean you have to let go…so to speak…"

"Tch…nice try…she just wants to be friends right now…so I'm honoring her wish."

"How boring…" Rika wilted.

"Look…the Neighbor's Club is going on a trip to the beach again…uh…this time with Yozora…were going to come to that…or…?"

"Of course."

He blinked, "So…so you knew the club was fine…and I didn't even have to come here in the first place…"

"Correct, but Rika appreciates the visit." She smiled.

"Fuck me."

"Gladly."

"Hey, stay away!" He backed up to the doorway, which wasn't saying much in terms of distance, given how tightly-knit the room was. "So…you weren't worried about the future of the club at all?"

"Rika's seen worse…especially when Sena confessed to Kodaka…now that's a story and a half." Rika said, "Besides…Rika thinks you can help her in some way."

"This…this sounds like the hook to a dirty joke…"

"Rika told you when we were camping that she wanted to be Yozora's friend. You've forgotten." She looked at him.

Cadmus swallowed hard. When her jovial expression faded, it really added a lot of tension in the room.

"Rika and the others all want to be friends with Yozora. We care about her. We're worried for her."

He nodded. Honestly he forgot sometimes that under that perverted façade, Rika could not only get serious, but was a genius to boot. So getting on her bad side was in no ways a profitable idea. "She seems fine now. I mean…I don't really know what 'normal' Yozora is per se…but she seems a bit less…closed-off. I guess we'll see in the next few days."

Rika nodded back, "Rika will see you at the beach, then."

* * *

There was an overwhelming sense of déjà vu going on where they were all on the sands of the beach. Albeit this time it was slightly later, the sun was making its way down, but it didn't deter them any. There was just one thing missing.

"I thought you said Yozora was coming." Rika glanced at Cadmus, "So where is she?"

"She'll be here…just give her a couple minutes…" Cadmus said, back in his black swim trunks.

"Did you lie to us just to get us all out here…daddy will not be pleased if I was lied to." Sena frowned.

"Come on, what the hell would I gain by lying about this?" He asked.

"Everyone okay? How come you guys are all standing around out here?" They heard a voice behind them. They whirled around to see Yozora, a towel under one arm, holding a beach umbrella and a folded chair. She was wearing a crimson one piece.

It wasn't long before Cadmus's cheeks nearly matched the color of her swimsuit. He usually didn't think much of one pieces, compared to their two piece counterpart. But the way Yozora pulled it off left him speechless for a moment or so.

"Yozora, you're back." Kodaka smiled.

"It's about damn time." Sena humored with a smile of her own.

"We're happy to see you." Yukimura said.

"Rika's pleased also!"

Yozora paused, being greeted by the eagerness of the club all at once. It left her with a smile on her face. A natural smile, not one full of vengeance of sadism from the pain of someone else. She looked humbled, and touched. Cadmus smiled as well, a knowing smile. She needed confirmation that she mattered to these people, and she got it.

"Did…did anyone want to help me set this stuff up?" Yozora asked.

"I got it." Cadmus said, heading to her aid, while the others frenzied to get sunscreen on themselves to go out and play in the water.

"Alright." Sena tossed a beach ball up and down, "It's time for volleyball, version two! Volleyball in the water!"

"Sena…I'm not sure that makes sense…" Kodaka said quietly. The lot of them peeled off for the water anyway, leaving Cadmus and Yozora back at the beach, to their own devices.

After about five tries, Cadmus finally had the blanket flat enough on the ground, or at least without too many wrinkles, "This good?"

"Yeah, that's fine." Yozora said, finally getting the umbrella set up to create a decent amount of shade over the blanket. She then grabbed the folded chair, trying to unfold it, but it wasn't really cooperating. After three tries, she started swearing under her breath, "Damn it."

"Let me help." He walked over. He grabbed one half and she was holding the other, "We'll do it together."

"Right. Sorry, my mom can be cheap with this stuff."

"It's fine." He said, blushing slightly at how close the two of them were standing, "Alright…on three…one…two…three!" They both pulled, and eventually the chair snapped into its intended form. "Jeez…" He said, "It's probably going to be a pain in the ass to put back too…"

Yozora proudly sat in her chair, getting her book out, most likely the thing she was waiting for the most, "Thank you." She nodded at Cadmus.

He nodded back, then he looked ahead, seeing that the rest of the club was already playing in the water. "Damn it…"

"Something wrong?"

"No…nothing…just…I just…" He looked around, "Where's the sunscreen?" He finally found it nearby, mounted in to sand. He popped it open and started putting it on. The sun was descending, but it was still high enough to warrant it. And with someone as pale as Cadmus, he would sunscreen first, and ask questions later. "Crap…" He kept reaching behind himself.

She looked up from her book, "You good, Scruffy?"

"I can't reach my back…" He said, nervously chuckling, "Could you help me?"

She slowly set her book down, "Yeah, give me the bottle."

He sat in front of her, with his back to her, while she squirted some of the sunscreen in her hands. She hesitated, a little surprised at how small her hands looked, especially when she rubbed them up against his back. She tried to be as quick as she could, since she was getting more and more flustered.

Cadmus rose to a standing position, "Thanks." He said, "Guess I'll go play water volleyball or whatever the hell they got set up out there."

She wiped her hands off, sitting back in her chair and getting her book out, "Have fun." She snickered.

He left to play with the others, while Yozora kept reading her book. Though most of the time she wasn't really reading, she was thinking about what had just transpired. The bruises he got from those fights were gone at least. And the bruises he got from her was gone completely. That made her feel better, or at the very least less guilty.

She was interrupted when she heard his voice again. There was a beautiful sunset by the time he did return. "Where the hell did I leave my towel?" He muttered, "Oh…here it is…" He picked up the pitch black towel, the first thing he attacked was his hair.

"Done already?" Yozora asked, "I feel like you were only gone for an hour or two."

"Ugh, I know…I just can't keep up with them…I'd rather just sit back and relax…watch the waves…the sky…I don't know…I guess I'm pooped…" He said, still messing around with drying off, "My hair's gonna stick up in twenty different directions when I'm done…"

"It already does stick up in twenty different directions."

"…I…I meant twenty _more_ different directions…" He said. Once he finished drying off, he sat down on the blanket, looking ahead of himself.

She crossed her legs, "I feel bad…I would have brought more chairs…but…I just assumed everyone would want to do something more active."

"Don't feel bad. I'm comfortable."

"Okay…" She said, "Are you sure you don't want to go back out there with the others?"

"Nah, I'm way too exhausted."

Yozora went back to reading. Every so often, she'd check just barely above the book to see Cadmus sitting in front of her, and the rest of the club playing around in the water, content as could be, "They…they're all having fun…right?"

"Course they are."

She smiled, a bit relieved, "Good. It…it'd be bad if we went back on our word. We…we need to look out for one another, especially after what's happened recently…both before your time, and after you've joined."

He looked back at her and smiled, "Hey, we'll all be alright. Everything's going to be fine. And it's all thanks to you, Madame President."

"You need to stop calling me that."

"Never."

* * *

 **A/N:** Things seem to be going nicely for the Neighbor's Club at the moment. I wonder how things will turn out in the future. Thanks for reading!


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